MLB umpire Joe West is set to retire after the 2021 postseason and has officially informed Major League Baseball of his plans, according to ESPN. The 68-year-old is the record holder for most games umpired, a record he broke in May. His record-breaking game came when he umped his 5,376th contest, which surpassed previous record holder Bill Klem.
West is scheduled to work the National League Wild Card Game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday at Dodger Stadium.
West was asked if he would be behind home plate, to which he told ESPN, “we’re not supposed to say, but I am.” Here’s more from West (via ESPN):
“Breaking the record was the goal. 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.”
Spending more than four decades with the game, West has a lot to pass on to umpires that follow him.
“Your first responsibility is to the game of baseball,” he told ESPN. “That might not mean the commissioner’s office. It’s the game itself. Your second responsibility is to your profession. That might not mean the [umpire’s] union. The third responsibility is to do in your heart what is morally honest and correct. If you do that, you won’t be wrong.”
West has been in the center of a handful of controversies both on and off the field over his lengthy career, including in 2020 when he questioned the death toll during the COVID-19 pandemic.
