Sportscasting icon Dick Enberg dead at 82

Longtime sportscaster Dick Enberg has died of a suspected heart attack in La Jolla, Calif. at 82, his wife told the San Diego Union-Tribune on Thursday. His daughter confirmed the report with the Associated Press.

Enberg was a fixture in American households for years, calling NFL and MLB games and Wimbledon for NBC, CBS and ESPN. He was best known for his catch phrase, “Oh, my!”

He spent his later years in San Diego, calling games locally for the Padres.

The Padres released an official statement late Thursday night, saying, “We are immensely saddened by the sudden and unexpected passing of legendary broadcaster Dick Enberg. Dick was an institution in the industry for 60 years and we were lucky enough to have his iconic voice behind the microphone for Padres games for nearly a decade. On behalf of our entire organization, we send our deepest condolences to his wife, Barbara, and the entire Enberg family.”

Enberg retired with multiple broadcasting honors, including the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s Ford C. Frick Award, the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Rozelle Award and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Gowdy Award. He also took home 14 Emmy awards.

After starting his full-time career calling local games in Los Angeles in the 1960s, he spent 25 years at NBC, where his highlights included calling Michigan State’s 1979 NCAA championship victory over Indiana State in a game that featured Magic Johnson and Larry Bird and helped usher in the modern era of basketball.

He spent 11 years at CBS and covered Wimbledon and French Open championships for ESPN starting in 2004. In total, he called 10 Super Bowls, 28 Wimbledon championships and 8 NCAA Tournament championships, according to the Union-Tribune.

He spent his last seven working years calling the Padres before retiring in 2016.

He would have been 83 on January 9.