COOPERSTOWN (N.Y.) — Saturday marked the culmination of the decades-long love affair between Tim Kurkjian, ESPN, and the game of baseball. He was presented with the BBWAA Career Excellence Award in Cooperstown.
Kurkjian stated that “this is the greatest honor of all my professional lives,” to ESPN’s Outside the Lines. “There isn’t a second. Every day I wake up and repeat what Cal Ripken had said after breaking Lou Gehrig’s record: “It cannot be happening to me.”
Kurkjian accepts the award each year, which is given to a sportswriter “for meritorious contribution to baseball writing.” He joins the ranks of those who have been honored in the past, including mentors, heroes, and friends.
Kurkjian stated, “When you look back at those names and then coming forward along with Jayson Stark (Peter Gammons), Dan Shaughnessy, Jayson Sternk, etc., it’s just so honorable.”
Kurkjian is a baseball fanatic. His father was a passionate player and his brothers played for Catholic University. Kurkjian, a native of Bethesda in Maryland, played basketball and baseball at Walter Johnson High School, named after the Hall of Fame pitcher. Kurkjian also wrote for “The Pitch”, the school newspaper.
Kurkjian stated, “This is something I have been interested in all my life.” “This is not something I was interested in after high school.”
Kurkjian and Jack Graney were honored in a private ceremony held at Alice Busch Opera Theater, Glimmerglass Festival, Cooperstown.
Kurkjian (65) has written three books about baseball and his experiences. He joined the Washington Star in 1979 to begin his professional career. He was already covering the Washington Star in 1981. Texas Rangers The Dallas Morning News was followed by four years covering the Orioles at the Baltimore Sun.
Kurkjian joined ESPN after seven years of service with Sports Illustrated. He has been a columnist since then and is a key part of ESPN’s broadcast coverage. He was a fixture on Baseball Tonight, contributed regularly to SportsCenter, and worked as a reporter during broadcasts. Kurkjian received two awards for his television work.
Kurkjian’s long and varied history has been a stepping stone to his success as a baseball legend and someone who is passionate about the game. Kurkjian, the son of mathematicians, is well-known for his meticulous work ethic. He used to cut newspaper box scores and paste them into spiral notebooks for 20 years. This practice was discontinued because it became difficult to find printed box scores.
Ripken said that he believed Tim saw the best in baseball, as he told ESPN’s Willie Weinbaum.
Kurkjian reported on Ripken while he was covering the Orioles beat. This included his pursuit for Lou Gehrig’s record of consecutive games played. Kurkjian and Ripken became friends because Kurkjian is passionate about pickup basketball. He displayed remarkable intelligence despite being only 5-foot-4″.
Ripken stated that basketball was what bonded them. “I can recall him taking his NBA ball with him on the road when he was covering us and looking for some kind of game. We connected and played basketball every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday night.”
Kurkjian was not only a friend to Ripken, but he has forged many other relationships in his career in sports. He is also known for his positivity and generosity, as well as his skills in broadcasting and writing. Kurkjian was also well-known for his knowledge of baseball.
It’s been a love affair, and it’s continuing. On Saturday, Kurkjian was awarded a permanent spot among the legends of the sport.