George Merlyn Anthony (April 26, 1926 – February 2, 1993) was an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

who worked in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

from 1969 to 1975. Anthony umpired the

1974 Major League Baseball All-Star Game The 1974 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 45th playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 23 ...

and the

1973 American League Championship Series The 1973 American League Championship Series took place between October 6 and 11, 1973. The Oakland Athletics defeated the Baltimore Orioles, three games to two. Games 1 and 2 were played in Memorial Stadium in Baltimore; Games 3–5 w ...

. In his career, he umpired 965 Major League games. Before his umpiring career, he was a Minor League Baseball player in 1946 and 1948. During the 1950s Merle played second base for his hometown Marysville Giants and the Yuba-Sutter Rebels where he gave younger players tips on how to improve their skills. His nickname was "Rabbit."

Early career

Anthony had a brief minor league career as a player in the 1940s and 1950s. He returned to the minor leagues as an umpire between 1960 and 1969. During that period, Anthony umpired in the California League and the Pacific Coast League before receiving the nod to work in the major leagues.

MLB career

Notable games

As a home plate umpire on July 9, 1971, Anthony was involved in two arguments with

Tony Conigliaro Anthony Richard Conigliaro (January 7, 1945 – February 24, 1990), nicknamed "Tony C" and "Conig", was a Major League Baseball outfielder and right-handed batter who played for the Boston Red Sox (1964–1967, 1969–1970, 1975) and California ...

that preceded Conigliaro's retirement the next day. The first ensued when Conigliaro swung at a dropped third strike. The slugger ran to first base, but Anthony called him out per baseball rules, as there was already a runner occupying first base. In the 19th inning, Conigliaro was called out on strikes while attempting to bunt. Conigliaro tossed his helmet in the air and hit it with his bat. The player was ejected by one of Anthony's crew members,

George Maloney George Patrick Maloney (February 28, 1928 – July 29, 2003) was a professional baseball umpire who worked in the American League from 1969 to 1983, wearing uniform number 28 when the American League adopted them for umpires in 1980. Maloney umpir ...

. Anthony was also one of the first three umpires, along with

Don Denkinger Donald Anton Denkinger (; born August 28, 1936) is a former Major League Baseball umpire who worked in the American League from 1969 to 1998. Denkinger wore uniform number 11, when the AL adopted uniform numbers in 1980. He is best remembered f ...

and Dave Phillips, to switch to the inside chest protector, which American League umpires were allowed to use beginning in the 1975 season.

Personal life

Anthony was married to the former Virginia Luggar.TSN Umpire Card: Merle Anthony
/ref> He was sales manager of the local Plymouth dealer during the 1950s.

References

External links