Bleed Cubbie Blue · Oct 6, 2021
MLB umpire Joe West, at last, is retiring
Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesJoe West has been a major-league umpire since 1976. Earlier this season he broke Bill Klem’s longstanding record for most games umpired, and now, he’s announced that he will retire after the 2020 postseason:
West, 68, broke the record for most games umpired, held by Bill Klem, when he was behind the plate for No. 5,376 in May.
“Breaking the record was the goal,” West told ESPN on Monday. “I thought I would do it last year but the season got a little messed up and I don’t think it was right to work until the point of the record then just quit.”