Culbreth & Danley Round Out Retirements (Joining Davis, Gorman & West), with Diaz, Gibson, Hudson, Kulpa, and Welke Promoted to Crew Chief

Major League Baseball announced its final umpire staff changes for 2022, with Fieldin Culbreth and Kerwin Danley retiring alongside Gerry Davis, Brian Gorman, and Joe West. Crew Chief promotions and new full-time umpires hires were also announced.

MLB's official announcement confirms the hiring of Ryan Additon, Sean Barber, John Libka, Ben May, and Roberto Ortiz to the full-time staff. The new-hires have worked the following numbers of MLB games prior to 2022:

> Additon: 381 major league games.

> Barber: 693.

> Libka: 371.

> May: 658.

> Ortiz: 412.

Retiring umpires are Culbreth, Danley, Davis, Gorman, and West. They retire with the following experience:

> Culbreth: 29 years, 3140 regular season. 1 Wild Card, 8 Division, 7 Lg Champ, 3 World Series.

> Danley: 30 years, 2656 regular season. 1 Wild Card, 7 Division, 2 Lg Champ, 2 World Series.

> Davis: 40 years, 4849 regular season (5k overall). 3 WC, 13 DS, 11 LCS, 6 World Series.

> Gorman: 31 years, 3430 regular season. 1 WC, 10 DS, 7 LCS, 3 World Series.

> West: 44 years, 5460 regular season. 4 WC, 8 DS, 10 LCS, 6 World Series.

West retires as the umpire with the most games officiated in MLB history; Gerry Davis has the fourth-most all-time. Davis retires with the second-most League Championship Series officiated with 11 (Jerry Crawford 12), and Joe West with the third-most (10). Davis has the most Division Series officiated with 13 and Brian Gorman has the 6th-most. Gerry Davis has the most postseason games in MLB history (151) and Joe West is second (132, presently tied with Ted Barrett).

Promoted to crew chief to fill the five retirements are Laz Diaz, Greg Gibson, Marvin Hudson, Ron Kulpa, and Bill Welke. Of that list, Diaz, Hudson, Kulpa, and Welke served as interim crew chiefs for MLB's COVID-shortened 2020 season (Greg Gibson opted out).

Related Post: MLB Names 7 Interim Crew Chiefs for 2020 (7/23/20).

2021 UEFL Award for Gera Honorable Umpire - Joe West

Joe West wins the UEFL's 2021 Bernice Gera Honorable Umpire Award [2020: Angel Hernandez & West].

Voting Results: Joe West (23.6%), Tom Hallion (8.3%), Gerry Davis (6.9%).

Joe West is the UEFL's 2021 Bernice Gera Honorable Umpire of the Year.

As baseball's Blue Cowboy hangs up his mask and WestVest for the final time on an MLB field, he first stops to collect the UEFL's Bernice Gera Honorable Umpire of the Year Award.

After setting the MLB record for most regular season games officiated in major league history back in May by first tying Bill Klem at 5,375 and then surpassing The Old Arbiter, West earned himself a postseason plate assignment in a winner take all game—the NL Wild Card Game—and promptly proceeded to give as a farewell gift to baseball a typical West postseason performance: a 98.8% game, or 164/166.

In voting for West's repeat Honorable Umpire nod (2020-21) this year, UEFL'ers cited both West's milestone season as well as West's numerous contributions to the game of baseball from his NL debut in 1976, some 45 years ago.

Retrosheet gives West a final career tally of 5,460 regular season games officiated, 4 Wild Card assignments (3 Games + 1 Series [2 games] = 5 total games), 8 Division Series (33 games), 10 League Championship Series (60 games), 6 World Series (34 games), and 3 All-Star Games. West's career ejection total reached 196.

West will be eligible for Hall of Fame candidacy six months following retirement, which, depending on how long the owners-players dispute and lockout lasts, may be a little while. Thus, while West may be realistically off the field, he (and several other umpires this year) is not actually "retired" just yet.

UEFL Awards History, Joe West

Honorable Umpire of the Year: 2009, 2020

Ejection of the Year: 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018

The next postseason award to be announced will be Promising Umpire of the Year.

MLB Ejection 055 - Joe West (2; Mike Shildt)

3B Umpire Joe West ejected Cardinals manager Mike Shildt (foreign substance; QOCU) in the bottom of the 7th inning of the #Cardinals-#WhiteSox game. With one out and one on (R2), Cardinals pitcher Giovanny Gallegos replaced pitcher Genesis Cabrera. As Gallegos threw his warmup pitches, the umpires investigated Gallegos' hat, which appeared to have a visible dark spot in the center of its bill. West ordered Gallegos remove the hat and wear a substitute hat in its place, resulting in Shildt's ejection for arguing the umpire's order issued in accordance with Official Baseball Rule 8.01(b), which allows "Each umpire has authority to order a player, coach, manager or Club officer or employee to do or refrain from doing anything which affects the administering of these rules, and to enforce the prescribed penalties."* At the time of the ejection, the Cardinals were leading, 1-0. The Cardinals ultimately won the contest, 4-0.

This is Joe West (22)'s 2nd ejection of 2021.

Joe West now has 5 points in the UEFL Standings (3 Prev + 2 MLB + 0 Irrecusable Call = 5).

Crew Chief Joe West now has 9 points in Crew Division (8 Previous + 1 Irrecusable Call = 9).

*OBR 8.01(d) states, "Each umpire has authority to disqualify any player, coach, manager or substitute for objecting to decisions or for unsportsmanlike conduct or language, and to eject such disqualified person from the playing field."

OBR 6.02(c)(7) states "the pitcher shall not have on their person, or in their possession, any foreign substance."

This is the 55th ejection report of the 2021 MLB regular season.

This is the 30th manager ejection of 2021.

This is St Louis' 2nd ejection of 2021, T-4th in the NL Central (MIL 5; CHC, CIN 3; PIT, STL 2).

This is Mike Shildt's 2nd ejection of 2021, 1st since April 29 (Brennan Miller; QOC = Y [Balls/Strikes]).

This is Joe West's 2nd ejection of 2021, 1st since April 25 (David Bell; QOC = U [Warnings]).

Wrap: St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago White Sox, 5/26/21 | Video as follows:

Joe West Sets MLB Record for Most Games as an Umpire

Since his first major league game in 1976, Joe West has remained a baseball icon, officiating longer than anyone in big league history. On May 25, he passes Hall of Fame umpire Bill Klem for most regular season games officiated in MLB history with 5,376. On this Joe West day 45 years after his big league debut, we look at some accolades and anecdotes from throughout baseball.

USA Today journalist Bob Nightengale wrote an article on the occasion of West's record-setting day, dubbing the 68-year-old West the Lonesome Cowboy, a nod to West's career nickname of the Blue Cowboy, which itself is the title of West's country music CD released in 1987 and recorded in Houston and Gilley's Studio in Pasadena, Texas.

Associated Press reporter Jay Cohen also wrote about the upcoming milestone, as did New York Times author Benjamin Hoffman, and so did Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune.

Hawk Harrelson recited his two rules of baseball ("first rule is catch the ball, second rule is don't mess with Joe West") and baseball personalities from Rick Sutcliffe to David Freese reminisced about their on-field adventures with Country Joe.

Even Duane Allen and The Oak Ridge Boys were spotted in Chicago to celebrate West's achievement (and to sing the national anthem for the White Sox).

As for West's recent ejection and other play-calling history, see our related label: Joe West.

When a Player Calls a Balk - Illegal Disengagement

Can a player call a balk? Although the answer is generally not, Chief Joe West's umpire crew in Colorado appeared to call the pitching infraction after Rockies baserunner Alan Trejo pointed out that Reds pitcher Luis Castillo had balked in the second inning on Thursday.

The Play: With one out and one on (R1), Rockies batter Chi Chi Gonzalez squared to bunt as Reds pitcher Luis Castillo delivered a 1-0 fastball high for ball two...or was it? Rockies baserunner R1 Alan Trejo pointed toward Castillo and appealed to 1B Umpire Bruce Dreckman that the pitcher had committed a balk. Dreckman called the crew together and Crew Chief Joe West emerged from the umpires' conference with a subtle gesture to award Trejo second base on Castillo's balk.

After a brief discussion with Reds manager David Bell, West again convened his crew before donning the headset to Replay Review HQ in New York, eventually resuming play with runner Trejo on second base and a 1-0 count on batter Gonzalez.

The Rule: Official Baseball Rule 6.02(a)(1) states it is a balk when "The pitcher, while touching their plate, makes any motion naturally associated with their pitch and fails to make such delivery" while OBR 6.02(a)(4) calls for a balk when, "The pitcher, while touching their plate, throws, or feints a throw to an unoccupied base, except for the purpose of making a play" and 6.02(a)(5) bluntly calls it a balk when, "the pitcher makes an illegal pitch."

With replays indicating that pitcher Castillo disengaged the rubber (stepped off with his back or pivot foot) after having already started his delivery, one could call this a 6.02(a)(1) balk for Castillo's failure to deliver the baseball while still engaged (or touching the pitcher's plate). Alternately, if one were to deem Castillo's actions a pickoff throw while disengaged, as in a jump-turn, OBR 6.02(a)(4) would apply since home plate by definition is an unoccupied base (remember, the batter is not a runner until such time as the batter becomes a batter-runner by putting the ball in play, ball four, etc.).

And if neither of those sound appealing, OBR 6.02(a)(5) is a catch all under the "illegal pitch" banner.

Getting the Call Right? Ideally, one would prefer that an umpire get this call in real-time.

As discussed in Jim Reynolds' ejection of Craig Counsell on Thursday, "The first requisite is to get decisions correctly. If in doubt don’t hesitate to consult your associate. Umpire dignity is important but never as important as 'being right.'" (OBR 8.00 - General Instructions).

Related Post: MLB Ejection 039 - Jim Reynolds (2; Craig Counsell) (5/13/21).

That said, an umpire must weigh the value of a player or coach's comments—lest a plate umpire consider changing ball/strike calls during nearly every at-bat over the course of a game. In this situation, Dreckman upon hearing Trejo's complaint clearly felt it had merit and consulted his crew, in the spirit of the rulebook's General Instructions to Umpires. This isn't always the appropriate course of action, but with a ruling of this overt nature, getting the call right comes first.

Video as follows:

MLB Ejection 017 - Joe West (1; David Bell)

2B Umpire Joe West ejected Reds Manager David Bell (warnings) in the top of the 6th inning of the #Reds-#Cardinals game. With one out and none on, Reds batter Jonathan India took a 1-1 fastball from Cardinals pitcher Jack Flaherty for a hit-by-pitch, resulting in a crew consultation and warnings issued to both teams. Replays indicate the pitch was located inside and struck India in the forehead, the call was irrecusable.* At the time of the ejection, the Cardinals were leading, 4-0. The Cardinals ultimately won the contest, 5-2.

This is Joe West (22)'s 1st ejection of 2021.
Joe West now has 2 points in the UEFL Standings (0 Prev + 2 MLB + 0 Irrecusable Call = 2).
Crew Chief Joe West now has 7 points in Crew Division (6 Previous + 1 Irrecusable Call = 7).

*Official Baseball Rule 6.02(c)(9) states, "If, in the umpire’s judgment, circumstances warrant, both teams may be officially 'warned' prior to the game or at any time during the game...Team personnel may not come onto the playing surface to argue or dispute a warning issued under Rule 6.02(c)(9). If a manager, coach or player leaves the dugout or his position to dispute a warning, he should be warned to stop. If he continues, he is subject to ejection."

This is the 17th ejection report of the 2021 MLB regular season.

This is the 10th manager ejection of 2021.

This is Cincinnati's 3rd ejection of 2021, 1st in the NL Central (CIN 3; CHC 2; MIL, PIT, STL 0).

This is David Bell's 1st ejection since August 29, 2020 (Dan Bellino; QOC = U [Fighting]).

This is Joe West's 1st ejection since September 21, 2019 (Aaron Boone; QOC = Y-c [Balls/Strikes]).

Wrap: Cincinnati Reds vs. St. Louis Cardinals, 4/25/21 | Video as follows:

Court Awards Joe West $500,000 in Suit vs Paul Lo Duca

A Supreme Court Justice in New York awarded umpire Joe West over $500,000 in his defamation lawsuit against former MLB player Paul Lo Duca, which had alleged that LoDuca made untrue statements about West on a podcast that was widely disseminated.

The Court's order, signed off on April 9, 2021 by Justice John J. Kelley was received by the state's electronic filing system on April 12, making for a most unusual of birthday presents for Lo Duca, who was born on April 12, 1972.

The case stems from Lo Duca's comments on a podcast in May 2019. West subsequently filed a defamation claim against Lo Duca, writing that "these statements impugn the integrity, honesty and professional fitness of Mr. West and affect his profession as a Major League Baseball umpire."

Related Post: Pants on Fire - Paul Lo Duca's Joe West Accusation (5/10/19).

Related Post: Joe West Sues Paul LoDuca Over Bribery Claim (10/22/19).

The case also revealed a glimpse at West's plans for the future. They include:

> West plans to retire at the conclusion of the 2021 season.

> West plans to participate in income-generating public speaking engagements thereafter.

> West anticipates he will be elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame as an umpire.

The Court granted default judgment in favor of West in July 2020.

Related Post: Joe West Wins Defamation Lawsuit Against Paul Lo Duca (7/13/20).

West's attorney Kevin Murphy stated, "Joe is very pleased with this result and we are glad that Mr. Lo Duca is being held accountable for his actions."

Video as follows:

2020 UEFL Award for Honorable - Hernandez & West

Angel Hernandez & Joe West are 2020's Honorable Umpires [2019: Eric Cooper & Chris Guccione].

Voting Results: Hernandez (13.3%), West (11.1%), Ted Barrett (10.6%), Laz Diaz/Jim Reynolds (10.0%).

Angel Hernandez & Joe West are UEFL's 2020 Honorable Umpires of the Year.

With a spotlight thoroughly focused on him during a still-in-litigation dispute with Major League Baseball over the league's purported failure to promote him to Crew Chief prior to 2017, Hernandez finally had an opportunity to lead a crew as an interim chief during the COVID-modified 2020 season.

Hernandez's 21 points in Crew Division were the most for any Chief during the 2020 season.

Said RIABUAvp, "Went out and led his crew capably + earned a playoff plate despite all the usual ridiculous noise from the general public and the pending suit with the league in the background. Then had a terrific plate performance. Not to mention he was obviously working through some injury with some type of cast or brace on his arm all year, but I don't believe he missed an assignment."

Hernandez's Division Series plate during San Diego-Los Angeles NLDS Game 2 produced a 97.8% score, which was second-highest during the series to Bill Miller's 98.4% in Game 3, and prompted a slew of tweets from usual Angel-critics praising Hernandez for a quality plate performance during the postseason.

Joe West, meanwhile, began 2020 testifying on Hernandez's behalf in the ongoing discrimination lawsuit against MLB, while simultaneously winning his defamation lawsuit against Paul Lo Duca when the latter opted to defend his position by ignoring the suit.

After initially complaining that COVID-19 deaths were exaggerated, West nonetheless began wearing a face covering during the season's second week, battled through a bloody bat-to-the-head injury by later returning to that game as a base umpire, and backed up crew mate Hunter Wendelstedt in requesting Nationals GM Mike Rizzo's removal from a game in Atlanta.

West thus wins this award not necessarily for one specific action—and perhaps in spite of several of them—but for his long-held philosophy and creed for officiating:

"My first responsibility is to the game of baseball. That doesn’t mean the commissioner’s office. That means the game. The second responsibility is to your profession. When I get on my pedestal at the union meetings, I tell them to be moral, honest, true and correct. If you do them in that order, nothing you do out there will be wrong."

UEFL Awards History, Angel Hernandez

Promising Umpire of the Year: 2010, 2012, 2014

Most Improved Umpire of the Year: 2015, 2016

UEFL Awards History, Joe West

Honorable Umpire of the Year: 2009

Ejection of the Year: 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018

Angel Hernandez now has 21 points in the Umpire Ejection Fantasy League (19 Prev + 2 Award = 21).

Joe West now has 4 points in the Umpire Ejection Fantasy League (2 Prev + 2 Award = 4).

The next postseason award to be announced will be Promising Umpire of the Year.

Kruk Hawks Joe as Crew Calls Backswing Interference

When HP Umpire Vic Carapazza and Crew Chief Joe West enforced the proper penalty for backswing interference (Rule 6.03(a)(3) Comment) during Tuesday's Phillies-Nationals game, Philadelphia broadcaster John Kruk expressed frustration, disgust, and, most notably, a thorough lack of understanding or regard for the Official Baseball Rules.

The following sequence describes what happens when the momentum of a batter's backswing (OBR/NCAA) or follow-through (NFHS) carries the bat behind his back and inadvertently makes contact with the catcher behind him as the catcher attempts to make a play.

Note: In high school (NFHS), backswing denotes pre-pitch bat movement (e.g., when the batter is first getting set in the box) whereas follow-through denotes post-pitch movement.

The Play: With one out and one on (R2), Phillies batter Alec Bohm swung at and missed hitting a 2-0 fastball from Nationals pitcher Daniel Hudson as Phillies baserunner R2 Roman Quinn attempted to steal third base. After receiving the pitch, Nationals catcher Kurt Suzuki attempted to throw Quinn out at third base, with Quinn sliding into the base ahead of third baseman Brock Holt's tag, eliciting a safe call by 3B Umpire David Arrieta.

Crew Conference: Immediately thereafter, Suzuki and Nats Manager Dave Martinez appealed to HP Umpire Vic Carapazza about potential backswing contact as replays indicate that Bohm's bat appeared to make contact with Suzuki's leg during Suzuki's throw to third base. After crew consultation with Carapazza, Arrieta, and 2B Umpire Junior Valentine, Crew Chief Joe West signaled for Quinn to return to second base and explained his ruling to Phillies skipper Joe Girardi, thus enforcing the penalty for backswing interference, as in Official Baseball Rule 6.03(a)(3) Comment:

If a batter strikes at a ball and misses and swings so hard he carries the bat all the way around and, in the umpire’s judgment, unintentionally hits the catcher or the ball in back of him on the backswing, it shall be called a strike only (not interference). The ball will be dead, however, and no runner shall advance on the play.

Accordingly, West's crew made the correct call—dead ball strike, return the runner to the base initially occupied at the time of the pitch—but that didn't stop Kruk from expressing a Hawk Harrelson-esque exasperation...just as color analyst FP Santangelo on the Nats broadcast properly cited the rule.

Related Post: Follow-Through (Backswing) Contact or Batter Interference? (10/13/17).

Related Post: Case Play 2016-9 - A Backswing on Strike 3 [Solved] (8/26/16).

Video as follows:

Non-Ejection - Joe West Removes WAS GM Mike Rizzo

Four years after Washington GM Mike Rizzo confronted umpire Jim Joyce after a game in New York, HP Umpire Hunter Wendelstedt and Crew Chief Joe West called for Rizzo's removal/ejection during Sunday's Nationals-Braves game from the stands/club level several decks above the field at Atlanta's Truist Park.

History: In 2016, Rizzo confronted Jim Joyce after a game in New York following a slide rule interference call that went against Washington. The incident was reported to the league and reports noted that it wasn't Rizzo's first argument with umpires at Citi Field.
Related Post: Report - Nats GM Rizzo Confronts Jim Joyce After Game (7/8/16).

In 2011, Rizzo was suspended for a similar confrontation with officials and in 2012, he was fined for comments he made about Cole Hammels.

Vic Carapazza mirrors his crewmate.

The Play: Back in Atlanta, with two out and one on (R1) in the top of the 7th inning of Sunday's Nats-Braves game, Nationals batter Eric Thames took a 2-1 sinker from Braves pitcher Chris Martin, ruled a strike by HP Umpire Hunter Wendelstedt, who turned toward the luxury suites at Truist Park and appeared to order the removal of Rizzo, stating, "You're done, you're out. We'll wait for you...Brian [Snitker], call security."

A maskless Rizzo yells back at the umpires.

Replays indicate the pitch was located off the outer edge of home plate and thigh-high (px -1.17, pz 2.67) [administrative note: there is no Quality of Correctness assigned for a non-ejection, see UEFL Rule 4]. At the time of West's removal request, the Braves were leading, 7-1. The Braves ultimately won the contest, 10-3.

Following Thames' subsequent swinging strikeout, Wendelstedt appeared to issue an equipment violation (fine) for Thames' spiking of his bat.

Joe steps aside to place a phone call.

Official Baseball Rule 8.01(b) grants umpires the authority to "order a player, coach, manager, or club officer or employee to do or or refrain from doing anything which affects the administering of these rules, and to enforce the prescribed penalties."

Rizzo as General Manager of the Nationals, would fall under a club officer, while West's request for assistance from Atlanta security would qualify under the employee category. As a Tier 2 employee, Rizzo under COVID-19 health and safety protocols would be expected to wear a mask or protective face covering in the ballpark, an observation West pointed out to Braves Manager Brian Snitker. Rizzo appeared to be the only occupant of his suite.

Prior to Sunday's game, Dan Bellino was the last umpire to request the removal of a non-uniformed person from a game, having called for security to escort a fan out of the stadium at Yankee Stadium for disrupting the game by calling out pitch locations during an at-bat.
Related Post: Dan Bellino Orders Fan Removed for Tipping Pitches (9/6/17).

On August 2, 2016, Bob Davidson requested security remove a Phillies fan for inappropriate conduct after the fan allegedly made homophobic comments, while Tim Welke called for the removal of a fan during a September 16, 2014 Nationals-Braves game in 2014 after the fan exhibited persistent vulgar behavior while profanely heckling then-National Bryce Harper.
Related Post: Unofficial Ejection - Bob Davidson Requests Fan Removal (8/2/16).
Related Post: Tim Welke Calls for Removal of Harper Heckler (9/16/14).

Wrap: Washington Nationals vs. Atlanta Braves, 9/6/20 | Video as follows:

Injury Scout - Joe West Bloodied by Bat, Returns to Game

HP Umpire Joe West left, then returned to, Thursday's game in Washington, DC after being bloodied by a flying bat early on.

In the bottom of the 1st inning of the Nationals-Blue Jays game (Toronto as the home team), Jays batter Bo Bichette swung and fouled a first-pitch fastball from Nationals pitcher Erick Fedde, releasing his bat on the follow-through, whereupon it clipped West in the left temple, causing the senior-most MLB umpire to bleed and receive medical attention. After a short delay, West left the game and walked off the field under his own power.

2B Umpire Vic Carapazza replaced West behind home plate for the remainder of the contest, with 1B Umpire Hunter Wendelstedt serving as acting crew chief and 3B Umpire Stu Scheurwater remaining at the hot corner in a three-person alignment.

The Blue Cowboy Came Back: West returned to the field to begin the top of the 3rd inning, and Scheurwater assumed the 2B Umpire position for the remaining innings.

Relevant Injury History: There is no relevant injury history. Updates will be forthcoming.

Last Game: July 30 | Return to Play: July 30 | Time Absent: 1.5 innings | Video as follows:

Joe West Testifies for Angel in Hernandez's MLB Suit

Angel Hernandez picked up a few key umpire witnesses in support of his discrimination lawsuit against Major League Baseball, presenting declarations from Joe West and Richie Garcia in the latest filing of Hernandez v MLB. Fieldin Culbreth's deposition from 2019 also made an appearance.

Fieldin Culbreth spoke about pressure from the league to apply for an open crew chief position in 2013 even though Culbreth did not initially want to apply and felt the job should have gone to Wally Bell or Angel Hernandez.

In May 2020, Rich Garcia told the AP he was "sick of it," in reference to Randy Marsh's claim that Garcia was fired in 2010 for watching son-in-law Vic Carapazza work a minor league game. Garcia, who has consistently stated he had zero involvement in Carapazza's hiring, went so far as to speak with then-World Umpires Association President Joe West, who backed Garcia's version of events, recalling that Garcia said, "'I don't want to be in a situation where I have a conflict of interest because he's my son-in-law.'"
Related Post: Rich Garcia 'Fed Up' Following Marsh Testimony (5/19/20).

Now, in July 2020, Garcia has turned that fed-up attitude into tangible testimony, submitting a written declaration in the Angel Hernandez lawsuit, writing, "Quite simply, Angel Hernandez should have been promoted to crew chief a long time ago. He is an outstanding umpire. I recommended him for the World Series several times."

Joe West also submitted a written declaration in July 2020, slamming MLB for deficient video replay technology in 2013 (Hernandez's "Cleveland Game") and for seemingly punishing Hernandez both for whistleblowing the video problem and for a July 2019 game in which Hernandez presided over a designated hitter/pitcher substitution situation in Tampa Bay: Despite the league telling Hernandez he got the call right and that he acted appropriately, West said that MLB, after a most unusual and unprecedented investigation, inexplicably removed Hernandez from his interim crew chief role.

Joe West Wins Defamation Lawsuit Against Paul Lo Duca

Umpire Joe West won his defamation lawsuit against former MLB player Paul Lo Duca, a New York court ruling via default judgment that the ex-Mets catcher and Barstool Sports personality's comments during a podcast episode constituted enough proof for the court to determine a viable cause of action exists, namely that Lo Duca allegedly slandered West.

In October 2019, West filed suit against Lo Duca, alleging he and podcast producer The Action Network defamed West during a podcast by falsely claiming as fact that West accepted a bribe in exchange for favorable calls during a Mets game featuring pitcher Billy Wagner, and falsely portraying as fact that West ejected Lo Duca "eight or nine" times during his career.
Related Post: Joe West Sues Paul LoDuca Over Bribery Claim (10/22/19).

Following a Close Call Sports Fact Check to the same effect, West's team argued that both claims were defamatory and demonstrably false, citing statistics and box scores indicating West never served as home plate umpire during a game in which Billy Wagner pitched and Lo Duca caught, and that West ejected LoDuca just once during his MLB career—not eight or nine times.

In March 2020, West settled with defendant The Action Network and accused Lo Duca of ignoring the lawsuit. The present court order of July 2020 accordingly removes The Action Network from the lawsuit's caption and finds, via default judgment, that Lo Duca did ignore the suit, which itself was/is viable.
Related Post: Pants on Fire - Paul Lo Duca's Joe West Accusation (5/10/19).
Related Post: Joe West Settles with Action Network, Accuses Paul Lo Duca of Ignoring Lawsuit (3/24/20).

In concluding his remarks and awarding West his victory, New York Supreme Court (County of New York) Judge John J. Kelley wrote ordered the following:
> Default judgment against Lo Duca on the issue of liability.
> Remove The Action Network from the caption (e.g., dismiss in light of settlement).
> Set inquest to assess damages at a later date.

LoDuca's Twitter profile lists his e-mail.

Shortly after the order's issuance, West lawyer Nicholas J. Zaita (who also represents Angel Hernandez in the latter's discrimination suit against Major League Baseball) filed an affidavit of service with the court, attesting that he served Lo Duca with the Decision and Order via e-mail to LoDuca's Loduca@barstoolsports.com e-mail address.

Earlier in the case, West's team tried serving Lo Duca several times at his various residences, to no avail, and the court ultimately granted permission to serve Lo Duca at his Barstoolsports.com e-mail address, as reflected on Lo Duca's verified Twitter profile.

The newly titled case of Joseph H. West v Paul Lo Duca will next appear before the court on September 15, 2020, at 9:30am.

Video as follows:

MLBUA Downplays West as Joe Adds New COVID Claims

With Joe West adding fuel to the fire with new claims about COVID-19, the Major League Baseball Umpires Association (@MLBUA) issued a statement downplaying West's comments, as fellow senior umpire Gerry Davis explained his reason for opting out of the 2020 season.

Recent public comments about the Coronavirus pandemic do not in any way reflect the position of the Major League Baseball Umpires Association.

So what happened?

Speaking with USA Today's Bob Nightengale on Wednesday, West added to Tuesday's comments to The Athletic with the following claims about the novel coronavirus: "statistics aren't accurate, I don't care who's counting them...our system is so messed up they have emptied hospitals because there's no elective surgery. The government has been giving these hospitals extra money if someone dies of the coronavirus. So everybody that dies is because of coronavirus. I don't care if you get hit by a car, it's coronavirus."
Related Post: Joe West Opts In, Several Crew Chiefs Out for 2020 (7/7/20).

COVID-19 payments were to cover costs.

Sidebar: We often receive similar criticism regarding the accuracy of statistics when pointing out that umpires are 97.5%+ accurate behind home plate and 99.5%+ overall.

The New England Journal of Medicine wrote in June that hospitals have been kept largely empty and cancelled elective procedures in anticipation of and to make room for COVID-19 patients and admission surges.

As for payments to hospitals—a 20% add-on for Medicare COVID-19 patients as authorized by the federal CARES Act—a USA Today fact check, first published in April, indicated the following: "We rate the claim that hospitals get paid more if patients are listed as COVID-19 and on ventilators as TRUE," but also found, "there have been no public reports that hospitals are exaggerating COVID-19 numbers to receive higher Medicare payments" and that the Medicare add-on was meant to "cover the cost of care and loss of business resulting from a shift in focus to treat [more expensive] COVID-19 cases."

With recent hospitalization spikes in Arizona, Florida, and other states, many medical facilities have recently reported a shortage of beds: on Wednesday, 56 hospitals in Florida reported their ICUs were at capacity.

Tara has asked for a stop to the fake news.

Nonetheless, West, speaking from his home in Florida referenced a famous death to support his claim that coronavirus deaths were overblown, "When country music [singer] Joe Diffie died, they said he died of the coronavirus. He had Stage 4 lung cancer. The coronavirus may have accelerated his death, but let's be realistic."

After Diffie passed away in April, his widow Tara spoke out about rumors he had cancer: "My husband Joe Diffie did NOT HAVE LUNG CANCER. his father passed, same name, November 2018 to stage IV lung cancer. STOP STARTING FAKE NEWS. I’ve seen multiple posts and it’s upsetting to all of us."

West, for the record, did previously have cancer, which led to a most unusual friendship with Hawk Harrelson dating back to 2013. The Moffitt Cancer Center writes, "While cancer survivors may not be at higher risk for COVID-19, emerging research does show if they develop the disease they are more likely to have complications and have to be hospitalized than those who have never had cancer."
Related Post: Harrelson's Ballad of Cowboy Joe West and The Hawk (1/7/17).

By Thursday, the umpires' union, MLBUA, released a statement seeking to put some distance from West's comments (West is a former president of MLBUA): "Recent public comments about the Coronavirus pandemic do not in any way reflect the position of the Major League Baseball Umpires Association...Regardless of any umpire's personal views, when we report for a resumed spring training and 2020 season, we will conduct ourselves as professionals and in accordance with the health and safety protocols."

Gerry Davis opted out: "I couldn't risk [it]."

Meanwhile, MLB's other senior-most umpire Gerry Davis, who like West is 67 years old, took a decidedly different approach than West and explained his decision to opt-out: "It was really not that tough of a decision for me...I can’t beat on my chest and say nothing is going to happen to me. My doctors told me I don’t have a higher risk of catching it, but higher implications from catching it. Eight of 10 people who have died from it have been over 65 or had pre-existing conditions."

Davis, who disclosed he has high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, brought the conversation back to his personal life and the deciding factor that made his opting out an easy call: "We have three young grandchildren. I couldn’t risk taking anything back to my family."

Video as follows:

Joe West Opts In, Several Crew Chiefs Out for 2020

MLB's senior-most umpire Joe West has opted in for the 2020 season while at least 10 other umpires have taken MLB's opt-out package, West explaining he feels that COVID-19 is not a threat to his health, despite the League's assessment that West is "high-risk." West also noted he plans to return in 2021 to surpass Bill Klem for the most regular season games officiated in MLB history.

Meanwhile, a source informs Close Call Sports that at least eight crew chiefs and two additional umpires on the full-time staff—including those deemed "high-risk"—have opted out. MLB offered to pay these umpires their full wages (as agreed to for the 2020 season), along with credit for a year of service time.

For instance, MLB's senior-most Crew Chief (as opposed to senior-most umpire-overall West) is Gerry Davis, another umpire who may be deemed at risk, and who is just 43 games shy of achieving his own milestone of 5,000 games worked. Unlike West, however, Davis may well decide to opt out.

Other longtime crew chiefs, in order of seniority, include, Jerry Layne, Brian Gorman, Tom Hallion, Mike Winters, and Fieldin Culbreth. A handful of non-crew chiefs also are in the older age category. Long-time backup crew chief Phil Cuzzi, for instance, will turn 65 in August, while rookie crew chief Kerwin Danley will not actually step on the field to work as a regular season crew chief until he is 59 years old.

Another umpire, Greg Gibson, is sidelined in 2020 with a quadriceps injury.
Related Post: Injury Scout - Greg Gibson Out for 2020 Season (6/11/20).

In an interview with The Athletic, West explained that MLB Deputy Commissioner Dan Halem was "taken aback" by West's decision to work the 2020 season, while revealing that umpires will likely fly mostly on team charters during the season, with little-to-no commercial air travel.

With West unable, in 2020, to surpass Bill Klem's record for most regular season games officiated in Major League history, the difference between opting in and out, relative to Klem, would be setting a new all-time games worked record in early April 2021 vs June or July 2021.

In deeming an umpire "high-risk," MLB considered several criteria, including age and medical history, including body mass index (BMI).

As for West, he described his heart as "healthy as a horse's" while stating his belief that coronavirus doesn't personally pose a significant health risk: "Most of these people that they're reporting are dying are not healthy to begin with," adding, "I don't believe in my heart that all these deaths have been from the coronavirus. I believe it may have contributed to some of the deaths." West also said he lost 25 pounds over the offseason.

Will umpires like West wear a mask?

According to the Center for Disease Control, however, the greater risk for misclassification is COVID-19 deaths being misclassified as pneumonia or influenza in the absence of positive test results, as opposed to non-COVID deaths being misclassified as COVID-caused.

West's home state of Florida, for instance, which is presently experiencing a statistically significant spike in reported COVID-19 deaths, does not include in its report "probable" cases: in Florida, only "confirmed" cases are included in its death report.

The CDC and John Hopkins University reported 130,000 COVID-19 deaths in the United States at the time of this report.

Video as follows:

Is This Gerry Davis & Joe West's Final Season?

Is this it for senior-most MLB umpires Gerry Davis and Joe West? Davis told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he has informed Major League Baseball 2020 will likely be his final season...that is, if it ever gets played. Both veteran crew chiefs are chasing umpiring milestones: Bill Klem's all-time games umpired record for West and 5,000 career games for Davis.

While Davis explained that, under normal circumstances, the 2020 season would be his last, he also left the door open to returning to the field in 2021 in the event that he is unable to crack the 5,000-games mark in 2020: he might even make his 5,000th game his last.

West trails only Hall of Fame Umpire Bill Klem in all-time regular season games officiated, and seems unlikely to retire until earning the all-time top spot...perhaps even longer. In court documents, West indicated 2021 would be his final MLB season.

And, realistically, how much of a let-down would it be to see either legendary umpire without a proper celebration in stadiums full of fans: As Davis quipped in his Post article, he might achieve the 5,000-mark during a game at a neutral site without fans. That's not what a 5,000-gamer (or in West's case, the #1 all-time games worked leader) deserves.

Even our friend Bob Davidson got a shoutout via the Angel Stadium public address in his final game.

With both Davis and West less than 100 games each from accomplishing their varied goals (Davis needs 43 more games to get 5,000 while West needs 60 for his goal of 5,370 career regular season games officiated [per MLB; it's 5,375 according to Retrosheet]) and the Minor Leagues reportedly ready to contract and eliminate many lower-league teams (thus, umpiring jobs), the baseball landscape appears poised for a change upon sports' eventual post-COVID resumption.

Video as follows:

Joe West Settles with Action Network, Accuses Paul Lo Duca of Ignoring Lawsuit

MLB veteran umpire Joe West narrowed his defamation lawsuit, settling his case with The Action Network over purportedly slanderous comments made by Paul Lo Duca during a podcast. While settlement removes defendant TAN, West now accuses Lo Duca of ignoring the suit against him and seeks default judgment from the court.

In October 2019, West sued The Action Network and ex-player Paul Lo Duca after Lo Duca made statements that, according to West, "impugn the integrity, honesty and professional fitness of Mr. West and affect his profession as a Major League Baseball umpire."
Related Post: Joe West Sues Paul LoDuca Over Bribery Claim (10/22/19).

Amongst Lo Duca's purportedly slanderous statements were claims made on a podcast produced by The Action Network that strongly suggested West accepted a bribe from Mets pitcher Billy Wagner in exchange for favorable ball/strike calls, as well as claims that West ejected Lo Duca "eight or nine times" during his career.

Fact checks both by Close Call Sports and West's legal team indicate Lo Duca's ejection claim was false—West ejected Lo Duca just once in his career—and that West never actually served as home plate umpire for any game Wagner pitched while Lo Duca was on the Mets.

As West's team wrote in the original complaint, "As a result of the foregoing Plaintiff was damaged in an amount to be determined at trial."
Related Post: Pants on Fire - Paul Lo Duca's Joe West Accusation (5/10/19).

On January 27, 2020 Judge John J. Kelley ordered that West's team could serve Lo Duca with a copy of the summons and complaint via his Barstool Sports e-mail address because service using more traditional methods, including at least four New York addresses, failed.

On January 29, West's attorney Nicholas J. Zaita submitted an affidavit swearing that he served LoDuca at the Loduca@barstoolsports.com e-mail address.

On February 28, Zaita and The Action Network's attorney, Jeffrey G. Landis, stipulated the discontinuance of West's case against The Action Network. In the joint filing, the parties wrote that West's lawsuit "hereby is settled and dismissed, with prejudice, as to the Defendant The Action Network, Inc. only."

Lo Duca's deadline to appear or answer expired on March 9—with Lo Duca having failed to appear or answer.

By March 20, with Lo Duca still having failed to respond to the lawsuit, the Supreme Court of the State of New York updated its procedures in response to the COVID-19 outbreak and impending NY "stay at home" order. This update postpones all civil trials indefinitely.

On March 23, West's team requested that The Action Network be removed from the lawsuit (due to the settlement) and that the court, on April 30, 2020, grant West default judgment against Lo Duca because Lo Duca quite simply has repeatedly failed to respond to the lawsuit.

Nearly two full months after West served Lo Duca at his BarstoolSports e-mail address, Lo Duca has yet to respond to the court.

Video as follows:

Joe West Class - Three Responsibilities of Umpires

MLB's longest-ever serving umpire, Joe West, spoke during a recent White Sox Talk podcast to offer advice to young umpires by outlining an ump's three responsibilities.

West's baseball discussion—with stories of the 2005 World Series, balks and ejections of Mark Buehrle and Ozzie Guillen, his friendship with Hawk Harrelson (the podcast got Harrelson's side of the story in 2017), filming "Naked Gun," and robot umpires—with NBC Sports Chicago host Chuck Garfien landed on the nature of an umpire's job, which West took as an opportunity to dole out a curriculum of umpiring advice about the three responsibilities of officiating.

Your first responsibility is to the game of baseball.
Said West, "You're gonna have to make some tough decisions."

Your second responsibility is to your profession.
"You can't make calls [thinking] they're not going to argue with me if I make this call, like the phantom play at second base where the fielder's off the bag. You have to say that he didn't touch the bag. If you call a guy out, no one says a word even though you're wrong, so why don't you call it right and take whatever little heat there is, and be right?"

Your third responsibility is to do what in your heart is morally and honestly correct.

Video snippet and full episode of West's interview as follows:

By Rule - Analysis of Joe West v Paul Lo Duca

With MLB umpire Joe West suing former catcher Paul Lo Duca for defamation following purportedly false comments made during a podcast on The Action Network, we asked sports lawyer and former MiLB ump Brandon Leopoldus for his expert analysis in By Rule, our legal discussion segment.

In October, West filed suit against LoDuca and The Action Network alleging that the defendants defamed West's character through spreading of false allegations after Lo Duca, in May, said on the air that West purportedly gave Mets pitcher Billy Wagner favorable ball/strike calls in exchange for Wagner giving West the use of his classic car.

MLB's stringent rules prohibiting bribery and the umpiring profession's reputation of neutrality and integrity would reasonably suggest that such an imagined quid pro quo bribe runs afoul of baseball's policies, and, according to West's complaint, have caused West to suffer harm, including but not limited to his professional relationships and impugnment of his integrity, honesty, and professional fitness.
Related Post: Joe West Sues Paul LoDuca Over Bribery Claim (10/22/19).

In May, we fact checked Lo Duca's podcast claims and found they were largely false; similar fact-checking is included by West's legal team in his complaint filed in New York court.
Related Post: Pants on Fire - Paul Lo Duca's Joe West Accusation (5/10/19).

West is represented in his lawsuit by Nicholas J. Zaita of Lewis Dibiasi Zaita & Higgens and Kevin L. Murphy of Murphy Landen Jones, PLLC, both of whom are also representing Angel Hernandez in his discrimination suit against Major League Baseball.

Video as follows:

Joe West Sues Paul LoDuca Over Bribery Claim

MLB umpire Joe West filed a lawsuit against Paul Lo Duca, alleging defamation after the former catcher in May purportedly asserted during a podcast that West accepted a bribe in exchange for favorable calls during a Mets game. West's complaint reads, "These statements impugn the integrity, honesty and professional fitness of Mr. West and affect his profession as a Major League Baseball umpire."

West's lawsuit against Lo Duca and The Action Network, a sports betting website that hosted or distributed the podcast, was filed in New York according to USA Today.

In May, we reported on Lo Duca's audio accusations against West, including claims that West ejected him "eight or nine" times, and that New York teammate Billy Wagner purportedly bribed West with the use of a car in exchange for favorable balls/strikes calls during a Phillies-Mets game ("I lend him my '57 Chevy so he can drive it around so then he opens up the strike zone for me"), finding that they might just be slanderous.
Related Post: Pants on Fire - Paul Lo Duca's Joe West Accusation (5/10/19).

Lo Duca's tall tales may be legally defamatory.

Fact Check - Wagner Claim: We fact checked Wagner's appearances against Philadelphia from 2006 through 2009, when Wagner was on the Mets, and West made just one appearance: as a second base umpire on August 30, 2007, in Philadelphia. Ed Hickox was the home plate umpire for that game.

The complaint corroborates our research: "In reality, during 2006 and 2007, the two years that Lo Duca played for the New York Mets with Billy Wagner, Joe West was the home plate umpire for a game between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Mets only once, Billy Wagner did not pitch at all, and the game ended on a home run, not on called strikes."

Fact Check - Lo Duca Ejections: Of Lo Duca's eight career ejections, just one involved West (in 2003), and never before the game actually started, which was an allegation made by Lo Duca during the podcast.

Bill Spooner successfully sued the AP.

Precedent for Defamatory Litigation: In 2011, NBA referee Bill Spooner—who previously was a minor league baseball umpire—filed a lawsuit against The Associated Press alleging defamation over AP report Jon Krawczynski's allegedly libelous tweet during a January 24 game between the Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves. Krawczynski purportedly tweeted, "Ref Bill Spooner told [Wolves Head Coach Kurt] Rambis he’d ‘get it back’ after a bad call. Then he made an even worse call on Rockets. That’s NBA officiating folks."

Spooner's suit alleged that Krawczynski, an AP reporter, reported the "get it back" statement as fact when it did not actually happen, triggering an NBA disciplinary investigation into Spooner's actions that tarnished his reputation.

In December 2011, the AP agreed to pay $20,000 in damages to Spooner to settle the lawsuit, and to remove the tweet from Krawcynski's account. In its settlement with Spooner, the Associated Press released a statement acknowledged that it "learned through discovery that referee Bill Spooner and coach Kurt Rambis have both consistently and independently denied that Mr. Spooner told the coach 'he'd get it back' in an exchange that occurred after a disputed call against the Timberwolves on Jan. 24, 2011."

The AP went on to explain it was a misunderstanding: "The NBA promptly investigated at the time and concluded that Mr. Spooner had acted properly...During the game, Mr. Krawczynski tweeted what he believed he had heard. Mr. Krawczynski acknowledges the possibility that he misunderstood what Mr. Spooner said and has therefore removed the Tweet from his APKrawczynski Twitter feed."

A $20,000 mistake... Krawczynski no longer works for the Associated Press.

West's lawsuit against Lo Duca seeks unspecified damages. The complaint is filed under case #160250/2019 in New York County Supreme Court as Joseph H West v. The Action Network, Inc. et al. Summons were issued to The Action Network and Paul Lo Duca.