Dale Murphy
Braves two-time NL MVP
“I think of Pete and it’s hard not to think of Ernie and Skip at the same time. When you think of one you always think of the other two. … The combination of personalities that worked together so well. They were a great team, each one totally different, totally different approaches, and it worked so great. Pete complemented Skip and Ernie. It was as great trio. … Those teams, personally for me, we only had a couple of years of real fun, exciting times. But those guys were great.”
Don Sutton
Hall of Famer, Braves broadcaster
“In my mind he’s the best play-by-play guy ever. I’m somewhat partial. … I can’t think of a better way to have begun than with Ernie, Skip and Pete. I mean, good Lord, I won the lottery twice. I start my baseball career with Roseboro, Wills, Koufax and Drysdale, and start my broadcast career with Ernie, Pete and Skip. I’ve been so doubly fortunate. … I owed him this career. … He meant so much to me. I don’t do it nearly as well, but he taught me how to do this. He taught me that the most important people when you sit up there and do a ballgame, are the people at home. The second-most important people are the people out playing the game. The third-most important is the person doing the talking. If people remember you more than they remember what happened, you’re not doing it right.”
Terry Pendleton
Braves first base coach
“I think the biggest thing was his laughter, his character, the way he kept everybody going. He was mild-mannered at times, and then at other times you got it all from him. … Back when the Braves weren’t playing too well, that’s all anybody knew was the broadcasters. But I think it helped them become who they were. The way they carried themselves and the fun that they had, and the relationships that they made along the way. … You really didn’t know him till you had an opportunity to sit around with him on a plane or sit around with him at the ballpark. It was a pleasure for me to get the opportunity to know Pete Van Wieren. As other people saw him, that’s how I saw him. Awesome, honest man who was truly concerned with your life and how things were going, and not necessarily baseball.”
Braves’ statement
“The Atlanta Braves are deeply saddened by the passing of Pete Van Wieren. He was such a large and important part of our organization. We and all of our fans across Braves country fondly remember his soothing voice calling our games for 33 years. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Elaine, his children and his grandchildren.”
