Former MLB umpire Joe West and four other retired umpires have filed a federal lawsuit in New York alleging their pension plan underpaid them by more than $2 million.
The suit, filed in late September, names the American Leagues and National Leagues of Professional Baseball Clubs Retirement Income Plan for Umpires and its retirement committee as defendants. The plaintiffs — West, Tom Hallion, Gerry Davis, Larry Vanover, and Jerry Layne — claim their benefits were miscalculated.
West, 74, retired in 2021 after a record 5,460 games umpired since 1976. Known as "Cowboy Joe," he previously won over $500,000 in a 2021 defamation suit against former player Paul Lo Duca. According to the Associated Press, West said the retirement committee offered a small sum and MLB senior vice president Steven Gonzalez told him: "If you don't like the number, sue us."
Davis also retired after 2021, Hallion after 2022, and Layne and Vanover after the 2024 season. The five sued as individuals, not through the umpires' union, according to their lawyer Paul B. Holmes. A pretrial conference is scheduled for December 11.
