I would do this in one line, so it's less bloaty:

```python
return tuple(map(int, re.search(r'\bLCOV version (\d+)\.(\d+)\b', 
                                check_output(...).decode()).groups()))
```
In case the parsing fails, you will get an exception in any case. This way its within the `get_lcov_version` function where it belongs.