Joe West poised to break umpiring record with 5,376th game

Joe West is poised to break baseball’s umpiring record when the St. Louis Cardinals visit the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night. West is set to work home plate for his 5,376th regular-season game, snapping a tie with Hall of Famer Bill Klem.

The colorful West, who turns 69 on Oct. 31, is perhaps the most famous umpire in major league history, known for his memorable run-ins with several players and managers over the years, to go along with at least one executive.

He also fashions himself as a country music singer and songwriter, leading to the nicknames “Cowboy Joe” and “Country Joe.”

West began his big league career at age 23, doing a handful of games in the last month of the 1976 season. His first plate job included Hall of Fame knuckleballer Phil Niekro throwing to young Braves catcher Dale Murphy.

He has worked the World Series six times. He has 193 career ejections — and West himself has run afoul of Major League Baseball on occasion during his long career.

During a 1990 brawl, West body-slammed pitcher Dennis Cook to the ground. After he was thrown out by West during a 2018 game, White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson said: “I don’t have much to say about him. Everybody knows he’s terrible.”