The 1979 Major League Umpires Association Strike was a labor action by the
Major League Umpires Association
The Major League Umpires Association (MLUA) was a union for the umpires of both the American League and the National League. It was formed in 1970. It was decertified and replaced by the World Umpires Association (now the Major League Baseball U ...
(MLUA) against
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB) that lasted from March until mid-May, 1979.
Background
Entering the
1979 MLB Season
The 1979 Major League Baseball season concluded with the Pittsburgh Pirates defeating the Baltimore Orioles in seven games in the 1979 World Series. None of the post-season teams of 1977 or 1978 returned to this year's postseason.
Standings
Am ...
, the union as well as the umpires were unhappy with the arbiters' working conditions. The highest salary an umpire could make was just under $40,000 per year for over 170 games (compared to $60,000 for an
NBA
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
official working fewer than 100 games at the time), little to no in-season vacation time, and very little protection against management. "The umpires have kept this game honest for 100 years,"
Ron Luciano
Ronald Michael Luciano (June 28, 1937 – January 18, 1995) was an American professional baseball umpire who worked in Major League Baseball's American League from 1969 to 1979. He was known for his flamboyant style, clever aphorisms, and a ser ...
explained to a reporter, in 1978. "We're the only segment of the game that has never been touched by scandal. We gotta be too dumb to cheat. We must have integrity, because we sure don't have a normal family life. We certainly aren't properly paid. We have no health care, no job security, no tenure. Our pension plan is a joke. We take more abuse than any living group of humans, and can't give back any. If we're fired without notice, our only recourse is to appeal to the league president. And he's the guy that fires you. That's gotta be unconstitutional!"
Strike Action
Though the umpires were under contract through the 1981 season, most remained dissatisfied with its terms. As Luciano explained, "Baseball's big shots have been ignoring us for 18 months since we signed that contract. It was agreed that we could still discuss and negotiate matters that were not specifically covered in that contract. But they won't even talk to us. It's like we don't exist. They can dress us up in blue suits, but they don't want to be seen in public with us. Baseball is making us mad, and you know how umpires get when they're mad."
In lieu of a formal "strike" the umpires simply refused to sign their 1979 contracts at the salaries offered, per instruction of union head
Richie Phillips
Richard Gregory Phillips Sr. (August 24, 1940 – May 31, 2013) was an American lawyer. From 1978 to 2000, he was general counsel and executive director of the Major League Umpires Association (MLUA). He held a similar position for National Baske ...
. Only two umpires,
Paul Pryor
John Paul Pryor (July 10, 1927 – December 15, 1995) was an American professional baseball umpire who worked in the National League from 1961 to 1981. Pryor wore uniform number 13 for most of his career. Pryor umpired 3,094 major league games in ...
of the
National League
National League often refers to:
*National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada
*National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...
, a 16-year veteran, and
Ted Hendry
Eugene "Ted" Hendry (born August 31, 1940) is a former professional baseball umpire who worked in the American League from 1977 to 1999, wearing uniform number 35 when the AL adopted numbers for its umpires in 1980. Hendry umpired 2,906 major lea ...
of the
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
, a rookie umpire, signed their contracts before the union action occurred. Hendry was advised by Phillips to work, and they would both join the union in strike actions later. The leagues made arrangements to use retired and amateur umpires to work the final week of
Spring Training
Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...
, including bringing up eight minor league umpires, including
Dave Pallone,
Steve Fields,
Fred Brocklander
Frederick Brocklander (March 5, 1940 – August 13, 2009) was a Major League Baseball (MLB) umpire in the National League (NL) from to . A native of Baltimore, Maryland, he umpired in the minor leagues for ten years. He was promoted to the Natio ...
and
Lanny Harris to the National League and
Derryl Cousins
Derryl Cousins (August 18, 1946October 19, 2020) was an American umpire in Major League Baseball (MLB), who worked in the American League (AL) from 1979 to 1999, and umpired throughout both leagues from 2000 until his retirement following the 20 ...
,
Dallas Parks,
Fred Spenn
Frederick Charles Spenn is an American former baseball umpire. Spenn was one of the eight minor league replacement umpires who was promoted to the major leagues during the 1979 Major League Umpires Association strike. Spenn wore uniform number 32 ...
, and
John Shulock
John Richard Shulock (April 29, 1949 – June 5, 2025) was a professional baseball umpire who worked in the American League from 1979 to 1999 and throughout Major League Baseball between 2000 and 2002. Shulock wore number 29 when the AL adopted t ...
in the American League. Attempts to force the umpires to go back to work failed as the courts refused to force the umpires to return to work.
The season began on April 4, 1979; Pryor worked home plate for the traditional
Opening Day
Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent year ...
game in Cincinnati between the
Reds
Reds may refer to:
General
* Red (political adjective), supporters of Communism or socialism
* ''Reds'' (film), a 1981 American film starring and directed by Warren Beatty
* Reds (January Uprising), a faction of the Polish insurrectionists duri ...
and the
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
, while Hendry began his American League assignment the next day, accompanied by amateur and retired umpires. At both locations the striking umps picketed outside the stadiums, dressed in their official umpire uniforms. After Opening Day, Pryor had decided to return to the picket lines, but was asked to return by Phillips, who informed Pryor he had to give 10 days' notice to avoid paying hefty fines. Hendry did the same and both left MLB ten days later. The players and managers complained about the replacement umps missing calls, even admitting them in some cases, and the complaints seemed to grow each day. Players and managers alike were being ejected frequently and sportswriters began questioning the umpires' integrity.
Settlement
On May 15, 1979, the MLUA and MLB settled the labor dispute; the terms allowed the umpires to have in-season vacations by utilizing an additional umpiring crew in each league, the institution of a 401(k) plan, increases in salaries, pensions, and per diems, and a return to merit-based assignments for post-season games (replacing the rotation system that began in 1975) starting in 1982. The settlement was hailed by both players and managers. The agreement was formally signed on May 18; as a result, replacement umpires worked the famous game on May 17 between the
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...
and the
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
that was won by the Phillies, 23–22.
Replacement Umpires
Another of the settlement's conditions was that the eight umpires that were hired as "replacements" during the strike would be retained, provided they maintained satisfactory performance (though Phillips claimed they were given additional credit not available to the veterans and the NL replacements were granted an extra week of vacation, charges denied by both the NL and MLB). This resulted in animosity between the veteran umpires and the rookies that the strikers regarded as "scabs"; since they crossed picket lines, they were not allowed to join the MLUA. The replacements complained about unfair treatment by the veterans—not standing behind them on disputed calls, vandalizing their lockers, not including them in discussions both on and off the field, and generally shunning them. These conditions resulted in separate lawsuits by the MLUA (referencing the above claims about preferential treatment of the replacement umpires) and by the replacements for their treatment by the veterans. Gradually the replacements left MLB as follows:
* 1980 –
Fred Spenn
Frederick Charles Spenn is an American former baseball umpire. Spenn was one of the eight minor league replacement umpires who was promoted to the major leagues during the 1979 Major League Umpires Association strike. Spenn wore uniform number 32 ...
(AL)
* 1981 –
Steve Fields (NL)
* 1982 –
Dallas Parks (AL)
* 1985 –
Lanny Harris (NL)
* 1988 –
Dave Pallone (NL)
* 1992 –
Fred Brocklander
Frederick Brocklander (March 5, 1940 – August 13, 2009) was a Major League Baseball (MLB) umpire in the National League (NL) from to . A native of Baltimore, Maryland, he umpired in the minor leagues for ten years. He was promoted to the Natio ...
(NL)
Spenn (in 1980), Fields (in 1981) and Harris (in 1985)
were fired, Parks (in 1982) and Pallone (in 1988) resigned, Brocklander retired for medical reasons in 1992.
Two replacement umpires remained in MLB after the
1999 labor dispute, which led to the decertification of the
Major League Umpires Association
The Major League Umpires Association (MLUA) was a union for the umpires of both the American League and the National League. It was formed in 1970. It was decertified and replaced by the World Umpires Association (now the Major League Baseball U ...
in a move led by American League umpire
John Hirschbeck
John Francis Hirschbeck (born September 7, 1954) is a former umpire for Major League Baseball. He worked in the American League from 1984 to 1999 and worked in both leagues from 2000 to 2016. He was a crew chief at the time of his retirement, an ...
, who led the new leadership group, the
World Umpires Association
The Major League Baseball Umpires Association (MLBUA) is an organization of Major League Baseball (MLB) umpire (baseball), umpires. It was certified by the National Labor Relations Board on February 24, 2000, as the World Umpires Association (WUA ...
, which the National Labor Relations Board approved on February 24, 2000. Both remaining replacement umpires were granted membership into the Hirschbeck-led organisation.
* 2002 –
John Shulock
John Richard Shulock (April 29, 1949 – June 5, 2025) was a professional baseball umpire who worked in the American League from 1979 to 1999 and throughout Major League Baseball between 2000 and 2002. Shulock wore number 29 when the AL adopted t ...
(AL)
* 2012 –
Derryl Cousins
Derryl Cousins (August 18, 1946October 19, 2020) was an American umpire in Major League Baseball (MLB), who worked in the American League (AL) from 1979 to 1999, and umpired throughout both leagues from 2000 until his retirement following the 20 ...
(AL)
Shulock retired in 2002, and Cousins, the last remaining replacement umpire still in MLB and the last umpire to have worn the AL's red blazer, retired in 2012.
Aftermath
The strike made players, managers, and fans more aware of the umpires' working conditions and their fight for improvements gave the arbiters more respect and games ran more smoothly after the regular umpires returned. The labor problems did not disappear, however, as the umps staged another walkout during the
1984 American League Championship Series
The 1984 American League Championship Series was a semifinal matchup in Major League Baseball's 1984 postseason which matched the East Division champion Detroit Tigers against the West Division champion Kansas City Royals. The Tigers took the se ...
that resulted in replacement umps working the entire series (with retired AL umpire
Bill Deegan
William Edward John Deegan (born April 13, 1935) is a former Major League Baseball umpire who worked in the American League from 1971 to 1980. Deegan wore uniform number 17 when the American League adopted them for its umpires in 1980, later wor ...
calling balls and strikes for all three games wearing the balloon protector—the last time an AL umpire did so in LCS play), and the
1984 National League Championship Series
The 1984 National League Championship Series was a best-of-five playoff series in Major League Baseball’s 1984 postseason played between the San Diego Padres and the Chicago Cubs from October 2 to 7. San Diego won the series three games to two ...
, which was worked by replacements until Game 5, when an agreement was reached. Other labor actions between the umpires and owners occurred in 1991, 1995, and culminated in the
1999 Major League Umpires Association mass resignation
The 1999 Major League Umpires Association mass resignation was a labor tactic used by 68 Major League Baseball (MLB) umpires, including 66 members of the Major League Umpires Association (MLUA), the official umpires union at the time. Unable to st ...
.
References
{{reflist
Umpire Strike
Major League Baseball labor relations
Major League Baseball umpires