By Thomas Ranson, Media Services Intern
They're a broadcasting match made in heaven.
Well, maybe not heaven to some people but to the San Francisco Giants and their fans, it is.
Their voices are arguably the most recognizable in baseball, and when records were broken, they were there first to give viewers a bonus show of entertainment with excitement trembling in their voices. From Barry Bonds breaking both the single and all-time home run records to the Giants winning the pennant in 2002, the Emmy-awarding-winning duo of Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper has lived every Giants milestone in the last 17 years.
"We're very proud that we've been able to witness his career," Krukow said of Bonds. "For the last 15 years, we've watched certainly the best player I've ever seen. We got to talk a lot of baseball with him and live a lot of wonderful moments in the game with him. How great it is to see the greatest player I've ever seen in 15 years and be able to sit next to your best friend for those 15 years and talk about it? That's pretty special."
Krukow and Kuiper entertained the Nevada baseball team and guests as they were the keynote speakers at the 24th annual Bobby Dolan Baseball Dinner Tuesday night at the Silver Legacy. The Giants broadcasters, who have been together since 1991, bounced comments and stories off each other like they were tuning up for the regular season.
The duo, especially Krukow, was just happy to be in Reno supporting the baseball team that Krukow's son, Baker, played on for four years. Jarek Krukow received his degree from Nevada two years ago and served as a volunteer assistant coach before becoming an assistant at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
"What my sons have gained being associated with this program has been invaluable," Krukow said. "It's prepared them for the next step. I have a nice rapport with (head) coach (Gary) Powers, coach (Jay) Ulhman and coach (Stan) Stolte, and I have gotten to know quite a few of the players. It's been really fun. Now I'm starting to see what it means to my sons having graduate from this program, what it means to them and how they've identified with it. It's the confidence they're going to have the rest of their life. It's been a great part of our family the last five years. It's not going to stop."
The two former major leaguers both played together for the Giants in a three-year span (1983-1985). Krukow led the pair with seven of his 14 years in a Giants uniform while Kuiper played for the orange and black for four of his 12 seasons.
"When I got traded to the Giants in 1982 and after the 1982 season, when we played together in 1983, he's the greatest guy of all time. And he was," Krukow said of his partner. "Nobody worked a clubhouse better than him. It was fun to be with him for those three years we played together and of course, we've been around each other ever since."
With spring training next week, baseball has been in the news since the World Series. Both Krukow and Kuiper commented on the congressional hearings with the Mitchell Report and steroids.
"Problems are addressed and policies get put in place where you don't have to go through this again,"
Krukow said. "To me, it's cumbersome to talk about it because there are so many things we can't talk about. But in the process, it will work itself out and hopefully one day we can pass this and say this was an era we're not proud of and move on."
Kuiper, who's widely known for calling Bonds' historic home runs, said the game jumps another level when Bonds approaches the batter's box.
"Would have I liked to see him back? From a broadcaster's standpoint, I would because the dynamics of our broadcast changes completely when it's his turn to hit," Kuiper said. "Everything seems to pick up.
The energy of the ballpark picked up and I know people at home we're not going to the bathroom. I know they were standing in front of the TV."
The call heard 'round the world belongs to Kuiper, but it didn't start with Bonds. Instead, Carson High grad Matt Williams hit towering shots at Candlestick Park, prompting Kuiper's signature catch phrase.
"He he used to hit the highest home runs anybody's ever seen," Kuiper said. "At Candlestick (Park) they used to go high, and then they would just kind of drift. It ended up being a three-part call, 'He hits it high, he hits it deep and he hits it outta here.'"
The new call for the longtime duo, though, could be pushing for Bonds in the Hall of Fame. Krukow strongly feels that Bonds and Roger Clemens, despite the allegations with steroids, should still get a ticket into Cooperstown.
"To me, it's an absurdity that they're talking about Clemens and Bonds not being Hall of Fame eligible," Krukow said. "I think they're doing it to hurt these guys. What's the other motivation? If you know what it takes to pitch 250 innings and play 150 games, these guys are Hall of Famers in my opinion, and so is Mark McGuire."
For now, the home run records belong to San Francisco. Kuiper was pleased to see records broken by a Giant.
"I think that 756 needed to be broken in a Giants uniform, otherwise what do you do with all the 755 before that?" Kuiper said. "I think if that record was to be broken, it needed to be in the orange and black and it was."
The 2008 season, though, will be the first time since 1992 that Barry Bonds will not be shagging flyballs in left field and powering bombs into McCovey Cove. The Giants have moved on, but Krukow and Kuiper said they will miss seeing No. 25.
"I hope somebody can fill the shoes and hit a few water shots where he can get excited and go crazy," Krukow said. "I don't know if anybody will ever see anybody like him again. If he does come back it will be in June when some team has an identified weakness. You can't pass up the lure of having one of the greatest hitters in the game. He may wind up in Japan. He's not going to play every day in National League. Those days are done."
Kuiper said Bonds' absence will give the younger talent an opportunity to shine on the big stage.
"From a standpoint of a team trying to rebuild, it gives us a chance to see some young players," he said. "It gives us a chance to see what these kids can do. Although rebuilding is probably not the right word, it's retooling."
