Kuiper has happy return to broadcast booth
SAN FRANCISCO >> Giants broadcaster Duane Kui per received a standing ovation from the Oracle Park crowd Sunday at the start of the second inning after he was shown on the big screen.
Kuiper, who acknowledged the crowd with a wave, was back in the broadcast booth for the second day in a row after having missed nearly two months. Kuiper, 71, announced in early June that he was receiving chemotherapy for an undisclosed illness.
HIs return Saturday night came as a great surprise to his longtime friend and broadcast partner, Mike Krukow, just as it had been planned.
“Surprise!” Kuiper shouted upon entering the booth.
A stunned Krukow, already seated in his position for the game, removed his headset, looked up and smiled.
“Come here and see me!,” Krukow said as he hugged Kuiper. “What a sight for sore eyes. Godblessya.”
“I am so psyched,” Kuiper said.
Giants-play-by-play-voice-Jon Miller said Kuiper had texted him and fellow broadcaster Dave Flemming on Friday to let them know he was coming to the park the next day. He asked them to keep it a secret from Krukow.
“What a buffoon,” Krukow said later, referring to himself. “I’m the only guy in the Bay Area that doesn’t know he’s coming
back, and he got me good.”
Said Kuiper: “My wife is so happy that I walked out of the house today where she gets six hours where she doesn’t have to worry about me tripping or falling or what I’m going to eat or what’s going on. I’m thrilled to be back.
“The one thing that I definitely learned while I was gone is how much I appreciate my partners, because I got a chance to watch them for all those games and I certainly do appreciate them.”
A 13-time Emmy Award winner, Kuiper is one of the Bay Area’s most beloved sports broadcasters. He and Krukow, teammates on the Giants from 1983-85, are in their 31st season together as the Giants’ broadcasting duo.
“We missed him,” Krukow said.
Kuiper has said that doctors have told him that he can’t be around crowds with his immune system compromised due to his treatments.
Kuiper was scheduled to work only the games on Saturday and Sunday. According to a Giants’ spokesperson, Kuiper’s availability to call games going forward will continue to be primarily dependent on his treatment schedule and how he’s feeling.
“I’ve got the rules from my doctors on how I’ve got to be really careful,” Kuiper said, setting up the punch line. “So right now, in our broadcast booth, we only have 40 or 50 people. So it’s not that big of a deal.”
Like his sense of humor, Kuiper’s voice was in top form, especially on his trademark home run call when Lamonte Wade Jr. homered in the sixth inning.
“High and deep to right. It ... is ... outta here!,” Kuiper said.
Kuiper played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1974 to 1985, with the first eight coming with the Cleveland Indians and the last four with the Giants. The Cleveland franchise announced Saturday it is changing its nickname to Guardians after this season.
Miller said when he received the text from Kuiper that was coming back, he replied by writing that, “I couldn’t wait to go on the air and say that the former Giants infielder and the former Cleveland Guardians second baseman was returning to the booth.”
Miller continued, “We’re thrilled that he’s back and he’s feeling good enough to do this as his battle continues.”