Grab Some Pine Meat: Nobody does it better than Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper

GRAB SOME PINE MEAT!

Prior to the arrival of Direct TV, Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper were familiar only to television viewers in San Francisco and hard core baseball fans who recalled their major league careers.

But over the past few years, baseball fans all across the country have realized what those in the Bay Area have known for some time -- The Krukow-Kuiper broadcast tandem is the best in the game.

If you tune into a broadcast you are likely to hear expressions like…

“That missed somewhere…”

“He ain’t pretty but he can play…”

“I see orange people…”

And the famous four-word phrase -- “Grab some pine meat…”

Anyone that has ever played the game -- at a competitive level -- is familiar with the term, “meat,” but Krukow has made the word part of the vernacular for San Francisco Giants fans.

So much so that you will find countless signs dotting the sea of orange at SBC Park proclaiming, “Hey Meat!”

Once upon a time, baseball broadcasters used their creativity to describe the action over the airwaves. But it was a vivid description for the purposes of radio and not the creativity of jokes. After all, commentators -- on radio and TV -- were traditionally more straightforward.

Through the years there have been some great personalities, but few -- if any -- have ever brought baseball into the home of millions quite like Krukow and Kuiper.

Where else can you tune into a game and see the color commentator “eliminate” fans in the crowd? To add yet another touch of entertainment, Krukow uses the telestrator to scribble out deserving individuals.

Haven’t you ever watched as the camera pans the crowd and wondered, “What is that person thinking?”

Those are the people that get “eliminated.”

But it’s not strictly a joking matter. The two former major leaguers bring a lot of knowledge and unique insight to the broadcast.

Those who have follow the game intensely can easily relate to the many baseball-related expressions like, “the broken bat concerto.” But unlike so many broadcasters, who seem to be intent on letting the audience know how smart they are, Krukow and Kuiper explain the game and the situations in simple terms. The casual fan can learn a lot from one three-hour telecast, all the while being entertained by the two longtime friends.

Entertaining, informative and fair. There are a lot of homers on the microphone who rarely talk up the opposition. Such is not the case with the Fox Sports Nets Bay Area team. If the opponent makes a great play, they will revisit and discuss it for an inning or two.

And it only makes sense. Nobody can appreciate what unfolds between the foul lines better than those who stepped across the lines. And both worked their trade on the diamond for many years.

Krukow came up through the Chicago Cubs organization and would spend the first six years of his career on the north side of Chicago. In 1981 he was dealt to Philadelphia for pitchers Dickie Noles and Dan Larsen and versatile Keith Moreland.

The right-hander was second only to Steve Carlton in wins, posting a 13-11 record and an impressive 3.12 ERA. But despite his success, the Phillies packaged Krukow, Mark Davis and Charlie Penigar to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for Joe Morgan and Al Holland in December of 1982.

The trade helped Philadelphia win the National League pennant that season, but it also gave San Francisco two arms that would become a big part of the Giants’ success in the 1980’s.

Krukow was part of two N.L. West champion teams (1987, 1989), but his personal best came in 1986 when he recorded career bests in wins (20), ERA (3.05), and strikeouts (178) and finishing third in the NL Cy Young balloting.

It was during his seven-year stint with the Giants that he first crossed paths with his future broadcast partner, Duane Kuiper.

One month before acquiring Krukow, San Francisco made a deal with the Cleveland Indians obtaining the slick-fielding second baseman in exchange for Ed Whitson.

Originally drafted by the New York Yankees in 1968, Kuiper was drafted by four teams (Seattle Pilots, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds and Boston Red Sox) in the next three years, but did not sign. In 1972 he signed with Cleveland, which drafted him in the first round at of Southern Illinois University.

Kuiper spent eight years with the Indians becoming one of the top leadoff hitters in the American League. The native of Racine, WI had a lot of big hits during his tenure in Cleveland, but one in particular continues to be talked about to this day.

On Aug. 29, 1977 -- after going to bat 1381 times without a homer -- Kuiper connected off Steve Stone (White Sox) for what would be his only major league home run.

Three-thousand seventy-nine trips to the dish with just one big fly.

It’s a fact that he can count on his color analyst bringing up on a few occasions during the course of a season. Barry Bonds (703 home runs) isn’t 54 home runs shy of passing Hank Aaron (756). Bonds is 702 jacks ahead of Kuiper.

For the record, in his 722 at-bats, Krukow went deep five times, another stat that plays a big role in the ongoing joke.

And when these two get together to call the action, you can expect plenty of jokes.