Former Republican Sen. Jim Bunning of Kentucky is recovering from a stroke suffered Tuesday in his home in Southgate, Kentucky, his family said.

“Thanks to the attention of the doctors and nurses at St. Elizabeth, he has been provided skilled care that is leading him on the road to recovery,” the family said in a statement posted on Twitter by grandson Patrick Towles.

Bunning’s wife, Mary, was with him as he was transported to the hospital, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. He was moved Thursday from an intensive care unit to transitional care. 

St. Elizabeth Hospital in Northern Kentucky said it could not release an update on his condition to non-family members, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported. 

Bunning, 85, was elected to the House of Representatives in 1986 and then to the Senate in 1998. He served two terms and did not seek re-election in 2010. 

Before entering politics, Bunning was major league pitcher, most notably for the Philadelphia Phillies, for whom he pitched a perfect game in 1964. He also played for the Detroit Tigers, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Los Angeles Dodgers over a 17-year career. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996.