Tom Lynch (umpire)

Thomas J. Lynch

• Born 1859 in New Britain, CT USA
• Died February 27, 1924 in Hartford, CT USA

Biographical Information

Tom Lynch was a National League umpire from 1888 to 1902. He was the first Major League umpire to work in over 1,000 games, reaching that milestone on September 7, 1896. He held the record for most games umpired in the majors until 1900, when passed by Bob Emslie. He umpired a total of 1325 games, 1309 as home plate umpire. After his retirement, he worked in the National League office then held the position of League President from 1910 to 1913.

Lynch lost his position as NL President when he made a controversial ruling regarding the game of August 30, 1913 between the New York Giants and Philadelphia Phillies. Umpire Bill Brennan had forfeited the game to the Giants, although the Phillies held an 8-6 lead in the top of the 9th inning, when Phillies acting manager Mickey Doolan refused to have spectators removed from the centerfield bleachers because Giants manager John McGraw claimed they were distracting his hitters. Brennan's decision caused a quasi-riot, and the Phillies appealed to Lynch, who reversed it and awarded the game to the Phillies instead. The Giants appealed in turn, to the National League Board of Governors, and they proclaimed that both Brennan and Lynch had been wrong, instead ordering the remainder of the game to be replayed from the point it had been interrupted. The disavowal cost Lynch his job, and Brennan defected to the newly-formed Federal League the next season as a result.

Related Sites

• Tom Lynch at the SABR Bio Project
• Tom Lynch on Retrosheet.org