Sometime this season, Joe West will work his 5,000th game as a major league umpire. Only two men have worked more: Bill Klem (5,375) and Bruce Froemming (5,163). West’s mother grew up on a farm and his father was a schoolteacher. He said his strong work ethic comes naturally.
West has umpired 25 postseason rounds, including six World Series. He was behind the plate the night the Yankees won the title in 2009, and also for Game 6 of the 2004 A.L.C.S., when Alex Rodriguez slapped the ball from the glove of Boston pitcher Bronson Arroyo. Rodriguez thought he was safe at second, and the Bronx fans unloaded on the umpires for calling him out.
“They threw everything in the book at us,” West said. “We had to call the riot squad out to the field to continue the game.’’
From “The Ump” by Tyler Kepner for New York Times, 2017; Photo by Kathy Willens
