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Legendary San Francisco Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow announced on Thursday, April 6, that he's calling it a career after 36 years in the booth. The voice of Giants baseball alongside his commentary partner Duane Kuiper, Krukow, 74, will retire at the end of the season.
The duo known as "Kruk and Kuip" have been a mainstay in the Bay Area over the past three decades that spanned some of the most memorable eras in the club's history. They called three World Series runs and Barry Bonds' road to surpassing Hank Aaron as MLB's all-time home run king, and they did so in their own unique way.
The pair coined so many terms that The Athletic published an in-depth glossary with all of their iconic sayings, from "Bettina Bunge backhand" to "Yarrraaaarraaarrrarrrahhhaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh" (the sound someone makes when they get caught yawning on camera).
Krukow and Kuiper are so legendary together, that Ken Rosenthal openly advocated on Thursday for the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame to make an exception to its longstanding policy of only allowing broadcasters to be inducted into Cooperstown one at a time.
Kuiper told The Athletic he plans on continuing next season.
"I just want to let everyone know that I will be retiring at the end of the season. I want to take this time to thank you for your incredible support," Krukow said in a statement released by the Giants. "Jennifer and I have been so blessed to be able to stay in the game for as long as we have and it’s really made it impossible to feel sorry for myself that my career is coming to an end.
"We are bracing for the emotional hits we know we are going to feel in the next few weeks. Jennifer and I are wondering if it is even possible to let everyone know how deeply we love and respect our Giants family. Our time together has been a gift. When Green Day asked, 'I hope you’ve had the time of your lives,' we certainly have."
In honor of one of baseball's biggest voices, here's a look back at some of Krukow's (and Kuiper's) most memorable calls:
Ok, technically this one isn't a call, but it's just as iconic as any other moment Krukow has had in the booth. At the Giants World Series parade on Oct. 31, 2012, Krukow took the mic and gave an unforgettable speech to the thousands of fans in front of City Hall to celebrate their team's second title in three years.
On Aug. 7, 2007, Bonds swung on a payoff pitch from Mike Bacsik, sending it sailing into the San Francisco summer night. Kuiper and Krukow perfectly captured the intense fervor of Oracle Park (then known as AT&T Park) crowd as they witnessed history:
"Bonds hits one high! Hits it deeeeeeeep! It is... outta here! 756. Bonds stands alone."
Back in June this season when the "tarps off" trend of fans taking off their shirts was at its peak, Giants rookie Bryce Eldridge came to the plate with the bases loaded and San Francisco trailing the Washington Nationals 10-7 in the bottom of the ninth.
"It may be more than 'tarps off' if Eldridge knocks one out of here," Kuip quipped.
Krukow responded, "I'm gonna hold you to it. Time to drop trou, hog out."
Eldridge indeed walked it off with a grand slam that cleared the wall in right field to complete a comeback from a 9-1 deficit.
Two days later, Krukow explained the origin behind that phrase in an interview with Brian Murphy and Markus Boucher on KNBR.
"Most of what I’ve ever used on the show, during the game, is just vernacular that's in the clubhouse, something that you heard along the way and all of a sudden, it just seems like it was appropriate," Krukow told Murphy and Boucher. "Now, I don’t know if that was appropriate.
"Back in the day, when we had 'kangaroo court,' that was one of the fines. Games over and you have a big [food] spread in the middle of the clubhouse and everybody has a bite to eat. That’s when you have your meal. And guys are going in and out of the shower. Well, if you go from your locker and you’re heading to the shower and you’ve got nothing on and you walk by the spread and you reach over and grab a piece of salami or something, that’s a fine. The fine is 'drop trou, hog out,' that’s 50 bucks. Some guys would go to the shower and they’d get fined, well, at least they’d get written down. Then they’d come back and do it again.
"So, dropping trou and hogging out had to do with how you approached the spread after a game, but it kind of found its way into the game on Wednesday and it just felt appropriate. That’s all I can say."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: A look back at Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow's legendary calls
Continue reading...
The duo known as "Kruk and Kuip" have been a mainstay in the Bay Area over the past three decades that spanned some of the most memorable eras in the club's history. They called three World Series runs and Barry Bonds' road to surpassing Hank Aaron as MLB's all-time home run king, and they did so in their own unique way.
The pair coined so many terms that The Athletic published an in-depth glossary with all of their iconic sayings, from "Bettina Bunge backhand" to "Yarrraaaarraaarrrarrrahhhaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh" (the sound someone makes when they get caught yawning on camera).
Krukow and Kuiper are so legendary together, that Ken Rosenthal openly advocated on Thursday for the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame to make an exception to its longstanding policy of only allowing broadcasters to be inducted into Cooperstown one at a time.
Kuiper told The Athletic he plans on continuing next season.
"I just want to let everyone know that I will be retiring at the end of the season. I want to take this time to thank you for your incredible support," Krukow said in a statement released by the Giants. "Jennifer and I have been so blessed to be able to stay in the game for as long as we have and it’s really made it impossible to feel sorry for myself that my career is coming to an end.
"We are bracing for the emotional hits we know we are going to feel in the next few weeks. Jennifer and I are wondering if it is even possible to let everyone know how deeply we love and respect our Giants family. Our time together has been a gift. When Green Day asked, 'I hope you’ve had the time of your lives,' we certainly have."
In honor of one of baseball's biggest voices, here's a look back at some of Krukow's (and Kuiper's) most memorable calls:
'We are the Giants, we are San Francisco, and we are World Champions'
Ok, technically this one isn't a call, but it's just as iconic as any other moment Krukow has had in the booth. At the Giants World Series parade on Oct. 31, 2012, Krukow took the mic and gave an unforgettable speech to the thousands of fans in front of City Hall to celebrate their team's second title in three years.
Barry Bonds' 756th career home run to break Hank Aaron's record
On Aug. 7, 2007, Bonds swung on a payoff pitch from Mike Bacsik, sending it sailing into the San Francisco summer night. Kuiper and Krukow perfectly captured the intense fervor of Oracle Park (then known as AT&T Park) crowd as they witnessed history:
"Bonds hits one high! Hits it deeeeeeeep! It is... outta here! 756. Bonds stands alone."
'Time to drop trou, hog out'
Back in June this season when the "tarps off" trend of fans taking off their shirts was at its peak, Giants rookie Bryce Eldridge came to the plate with the bases loaded and San Francisco trailing the Washington Nationals 10-7 in the bottom of the ninth.
"It may be more than 'tarps off' if Eldridge knocks one out of here," Kuip quipped.
Krukow responded, "I'm gonna hold you to it. Time to drop trou, hog out."
Eldridge indeed walked it off with a grand slam that cleared the wall in right field to complete a comeback from a 9-1 deficit.
Two days later, Krukow explained the origin behind that phrase in an interview with Brian Murphy and Markus Boucher on KNBR.
"Most of what I’ve ever used on the show, during the game, is just vernacular that's in the clubhouse, something that you heard along the way and all of a sudden, it just seems like it was appropriate," Krukow told Murphy and Boucher. "Now, I don’t know if that was appropriate.
"Back in the day, when we had 'kangaroo court,' that was one of the fines. Games over and you have a big [food] spread in the middle of the clubhouse and everybody has a bite to eat. That’s when you have your meal. And guys are going in and out of the shower. Well, if you go from your locker and you’re heading to the shower and you’ve got nothing on and you walk by the spread and you reach over and grab a piece of salami or something, that’s a fine. The fine is 'drop trou, hog out,' that’s 50 bucks. Some guys would go to the shower and they’d get fined, well, at least they’d get written down. Then they’d come back and do it again.
"So, dropping trou and hogging out had to do with how you approached the spread after a game, but it kind of found its way into the game on Wednesday and it just felt appropriate. That’s all I can say."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: A look back at Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow's legendary calls
Continue reading...
