Bill Lawson
William Richard Lawson
Biographical Information[edit]
Bill Lawson was a long-time minor league umpire who served as a replacement umpire in the National League during the umpires' strike in 1979. As one of the replacement umps with the most professional experience, he worked a large total of games during the strike - 27 - and all of them as either the home plate and first base umpire, another indication that he was particularly well regarded among the umpires who were hired for the occasion. However, he was not one of the eight minor league umpires who were promoted to the majors when the labor conflict was resolved. He returned to the minor leagues but retired after the 1980 season.
He had begun his professional umpiring career in the New York-Penn League in 1969 and moved to the Florida State League later that year. In 1971 and 1973, he was in the Carolina League and in 1973 he moved to the Eastern League. He began working in the Pacific Coast League in 1974 and stayed there until 1980, except for his stint in the National League. He later was an umpire supervisor in the PCL.
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