ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian is one of the best-known baseball reporters in America. His passion for Major League Baseball is unmatched and won him plenty of fans. Those elements of his personality, along with his exceptional reporting, earned him enshrinement in Cooperstown over the weekend.
The Baseball Writers Association of America awarded its Career Excellence Award to Kurkjian earlier this year. That made him part of the most recent induction class for the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
The enshrinement ceremony happened this weekend. Plenty of Kurkjian’s colleagues from ESPN and other sports media outlets took to Twitter to celebrate his achievement.
A good sign of a media member’s influence is what the players have to say about them. Tim Kurkjian said in his induction speech that one former player reached out upon hearing the news to confirm that the ESPN reporter belongs in the Hall of Fame.
“The day I won this award I got a text from Jim Kaat saying, ‘Tim we are connected now,’” he said. “Connected forever to a player as great and a man as great as Jim Kaat is the thrill of a lifetime for me.”
Kurkjian concluded his remarks by praising the sport and noting that it has meant more to him than just a means to making a living. It has truly been an important part of his life.
“Baseball was the primary language spoken in my house growing up. My dad was a really good player. And he taught us three boys how to play the game, how to love the game, and he gave us a great feel for the game. It was a privilege to cover the game 40 years ago, and now 40 years later, it is still a privilege. Baseball is the greatest game. It’s the best game of all time. It’s the hardest game in the world to play. It is a beautiful game.”
