Dodgers News: Jaime Jarrin to Remain Involved with Club Even After Retirement
After 64 years as the Spanish-language voice of the Dodgers, Jamie Jarrín will be heading into retirement sometime between October 14 and November 5, whenever the Dodgers finish playing baseball for this season. The Dodgers and the city of Los Angeles honored Jarrín on Saturday prior to their game against the Rockies.
At Jarrín's press conference prior to the ceremony, the legendary broadcaster revealed that while his time calling games for the team has ended, his relationship with the Dodgers and the Latino community will continue for at least two more years.
“I’m going to be with the Dodgers organization for two more years as an ambassador of the team, representing the Dodgers mainly within the Latino community. They have asked me to be with them, so I’m going to stay for two years. They wanted me for more than two years, but let’s see.
“I’m sure my love for the Dodgers is not going to end this year. After 64 years, I’ve really fallen in love with baseball and the Dodgers. They have been great with me. They have supported me, they have given me an opportunity. The Dodgers always were behind me.
“They treated me with respect. One thing I can tell you is I have never had any problem with anybody. I have been very fortunate to have really professional colleagues. They have been great.”
Jarrín was born and raised in Ecuador, and when he came to the United States in 1955 at the age of 19, he had never seen a baseball game. He was working as a reporter at KWKW in Los Angeles when that station became the team's Spanish-language flagship station, and a year later, he joined the broadcast team.
Jarrín didn't miss a game from 1962 to 1984, breaking the streak only when he took charge of all the Spanish-language radio coverage and production for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
In 1980-81, Jarrín helped the Dodgers in another capacity, serving as a Spanish interpreted for Mexican pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who would later become Jarrín's partner in the broadcast booth. Jarrín was honored by the Hall of Fame with the Ford C. Frick Award in 1998.
Millions of Spanish-speaking Dodger fans have grown up with a connection to Jarrín, and while he will be sorely missed in the broadcast booth, it's wonderful news that he will remain affiliated with the team and involved with the Latino community in Los Angeles for as long as he wants.
