DALLAS — The collective legacy of Duane Kuiper and Mike Krukow will not be defined by their résumés, but by their impact on the game of baseball. Still, there is no shortage of people in the baseball world who want to see Kruk & Kuip win the Ford C. Frick Award — together.
Those folks will have to wait at least one more year.
For a second straight year, Krukow and Kuiper both came up short Wednesday of winning the award given annually to an MLB broadcaster for “major contributions to baseball.” The honor went to Tom Hamilton, the longtime radio play-by-play announcer for the Cleveland Guardians.
The other nominees included Skip Caray, Rene Cardenas, Gary Cohen, Jacques Doucet, Ernie Johnson Sr., Dave Sims and John Sterling.
Given they’ve been one of baseball’s best tandems for three decades, Krukow and Kuiper will likely get another shot at winning the Frick Award.
Kuiper jumped full-time into the broadcast booth in 1986 following his playing days. Aside from one year he spent working for the Rockies in 1993, Kuiper has graced the airwaves in San Francisco for nearly four decades.
Krukow began working as a color commentator on a part-time basis in 1990, covering 14 games during his inaugural season in the booth. His workload increased to 45 in ‘91 and 72 in ‘92 before becoming full-time in ‘93. When Kuiper returned from Denver in ‘94, Kruk & Kuip officially became a full-time duo in San Francisco, a post they’ve held for three decades — and counting.
“Mike has been the best color announcer for a baseball team in the last 30 years,” Kuiper said of Krukow. “You’re going to get arguments from people in Atlanta. You’re going to get an argument from people in Houston. They could argue all they want, but I know for a fact that he’s been the best.”
