Tag Archives: Umpire
Ed Rommel
Ed Rommel (Baseball. Born, Baltimore, MD, Sept. 13, 1897; died, Baltimore, MD, Aug. 26, 1970.) Among the first of the knuckleball pitchers, Edwin Americus Rommel was 171-119 with the Philadelphia Athletics in 14 seasons (1920-33). Rommel then returned to the minors, became an umpire, and returned to the A.L. in 1938. He umpired until 1959, […]
Dutch Rennert
Dutch Rennert (Baseball. Born, Oshkosh, WI, June 12, 1934.) A favorite umpire among fans for loud, elongated verbal calls on strikes, Lawrence Henry Rennert worked in the N.L. for 19 years (1973-92). Rennert came up from the P.C.L. and umpired his first N.L. game Sept. 7, 1973. He was seventh in seniority in the league […]
Marty Springstead
Marty Springstead (Baseball. Born, Nyack, NY, July 9, 1937.) Now the senior umpiring official in the Commissioner’s office in terms of seniority, Martin John Springstead has been involved in major league umpiring for over 45 years. In 2000, Springstead became a special assistant-umpire supervisor in the Commissioner’s office when the two league umpiring staffs were consolidated. […]
Bill Klem
Bill Klem (Baseball. Born, Rochester, NY, Feb. 22, 1874; died, Miami, FL Sept. 1, 1951.) Considered by most observers the greatest umpire ever, William Joseph Klem once told players waiting for a call, “It ain’t nothing till I call it.” When he did call it, Klem rarely missed one in an N.L. career that spanned […]
Tim Hurst
Tim Hurst (Baseball. Born, Ashland, PA, June 30, 1865; died, Pottsville, PA, June 4, 1915.) It was his voice that got him his job and his temper that lost it for him. In the days before public address systems, umpires had to announce lineups and changes. Timothy Carroll Hurst was a famed boxing ring announcer. […]
George Moriarty
George Moriarty (Baseball. Born, Chicago, IL, July 7, 1884; died, Miami, FL, Apr. 8, 1964.) He spent three seasons with the Highlanders (later the Yankees), primarily as a third baseman, but George Joseph Moriarty gained his greatest notice as an A.L. umpire for 22 seasons (1917-26, 1929-40). As a player, Moriarty hit .234 in 1906, […]
Jerry Neudecker
Jerry Neudecker (Baseball. Born, Marine, IL, Aug. 13, 1930; died, Fort Walton Beach, FL, Jan. 11, 1997.) Jerome A. Neudecker was an A.L. umpire for 20 seasons (1966-85). Following Bill Kunkel’s retirement after the 1984 season, Neudecker was the last A.L. umpire using the outside “balloon” chest protector while working behind the plate. The outside […]
John McSherry
John McSherry (Baseball. Born, New York, NY, Sept. 11, 1944; died, Cincinnati, OH, Apr. 1, 1996.) Considered one of the best umpires in the N.L. in the 1980s, John P. McSherry died of a heart attack on the opening day of the 1996 season at Cincinnati’s now-demolished Riverfront Stadium. McSherry was the home plate umpire […]
