Kent Tekulve, the former Pirates reliever who was a central part of their 1979 World Series run, plans to retire from his analyst position with AT&T SportsNet when the regular season concludes. Tekulve joined the network in 2008 and spent a decade providing insights and intelligent commentary on the Pirates pre- and post-game shows.
In a statement, Tekulve, 70, thanked AT&T SportsNet for allowing him to “reconnect with all of the Pirate fans in the Tri-State area after many years of being out of the public eye.” In 16 seasons in the majors — 12 with the Pirates — Tekulve had a 2.85 ERA over 1,436 ⅔ innings.
“I could have never imagined, when as a 9-year-old I received my first baseball uniform and fell in love with the game of baseball that 61 years later I would still have the opportunity to be involved with it on a daily basis,” Tekulve said in the statement. “I want to thank everyone involved with what I have been allowed to do for these past 10 years for writing the perfect final chapter to my 69-year baseball odyssey.”
Tekulve rejoined the Pirates organization in 2006 as an advanced scout. Two years later, he moved to the broadcast booth. Tekulve underwent a heart transplant Sept. 5, 2014, after spending more than eight months on a transplant list. He returned to the ballpark Oct. 1, 2014, and threw out a ceremonial first pitch before the National League wild-card game.
“On top of the first-hand major league knowledge [Tekulve] brings, his love of baseball is contagious on and off the air and we all learn something new in every broadcast,” said AT&T SportsNet general manager Shawn McClintock. “He has, without a doubt, made us all more passionate fans through his own enthusiasm.”
The network intends to celebrate Tekulve’s career during each Sunday broadcast for the remainder of the season, beginning this week.
Injury updates
Francisco Cervelli (left quadriceps injury) has hit a snag during the squatting portion of his rehab. The Pirates will wait a couple days before trying again. “He’s engaged in some light running activity, so that’s another box that we have to check off,” head athletic trainer Todd Tomczyk said. “Francisco is pretty driven right now, to a fault, that he wants to return and finish the season strong.” … Gregory Polanco and Adam Frazier (hamstring strains) ran the bases Wednesday. “For any player to finish strong, mentally, outweighs the physicality of it,” Tomczyk said of continuing rehab with Polanco, who is on the disabled list because of a left hamstring strain for the third time. … George Kontos (groin strain) threw a 20-pitch simulated inning Tuesday without issue.
Bill Brink contributed. Stephen J. Nesbitt: snesbitt@post-gazette.com and Twitter @stephenjnesbitt.
First Published: September 6, 2017, 7:23 p.m.
