Five Ex-Umpires Sue Over Pension Math
Retired officials claim errors in their benefit calculations left them short by more than $5 million in total.
By Nadia Singh ·
Five former Major League Baseball umpires have filed a federal lawsuit alleging that their pension benefits were underpaid by more than $5 million.
The suit, filed on September 29 in New York, claims that the retirement plan governing their benefits failed to calculate payments correctly under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.
The plaintiffs are Joe West, Tom Hallion, Gerry Davis, Larry Vanover, and Jerry Layne. Their attorney, Paul B. Holmes, stated on Thursday that the total owed to the group exceeds $5 million. Holmes said that while some parts of the calculation were debatable, other errors clearly showed the men were receiving less money than they were legally entitled to.
The lawsuit names the American Leagues and National Leagues of Professional Baseball Clubs Retirement Income Plan for Umpires and its governing committee as defendants. Holmes said the group tried to settle the dispute before going to court. He described the offers from Major League Baseball as not very competitive and said the gap between what the umpires expected and what the league offered remained too large to close.
Joe West, who retired after the 2021 season, said he raised the discrepancy with the committee and was offered a small sum. West recalled a conversation with Steven Gonzalez, the senior vice president and chief employment counsel for MLB. Gonzalez reportedly told West, “If you don't like the number, sue us.” West later asked, “Does Steve Gonzalez not know my history with dealing with lawsuits?”
West worked a record 5,460 regular-season games between 1976 and 2021. He also won $500,000 in damages in a 2021 defamation suit against former All-Star catcher Paul LoDuca. Hallion retired after the 2022 season. Layne and Vanover left the profession at the end of 2024.
The Major League Baseball Umpires Association is not a party to this case. Holmes explained that the union chose to stay out of the dispute because it is not a large organization and its members are not pension experts. The plaintiffs are suing in their individual capacities. MLB declined to comment on Wednesday, citing the pending litigation.
U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams has set a pretrial conference for December 11. The case was first reported by USA Today. The legal process will now move toward that date as both sides prepare their arguments regarding the formulas used to determine retirement income.
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