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MLB Umpire Joe West Wins $500,000 In Defamation Lawsuit

Joe West, one of Major League Baseball's longest-standing umpires, has been awarded $500,000 in a defamation lawsuit against 4x All-Star Paul Lo Duca. Today's email breaks down the details.

April 14, 2021

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Friends,

During his 45-year career as one of Major League Baseball’s best umpires, Joe West has been screamed at and cursed out by hundreds of players. It’s just part of the job. He knows that.

But now, we know where he draws the line.

What am I talking about?

Four-time MLB All-Star Paul Lo Duca spoke on The Action Network podcast last year, accusing veteran Joe West of giving his NY Mets teammate, reliever Billy Wagner, a wider strike zone in return for loaning out his ‘57 Chevy when West was in town.

Here’s the full quote (Source):

"We're playing like a really tight game against the Phillies and Billy Wagner comes in from the bullpen. I used to go to the mound every time and like, 'What's going on?' and he's like, 'Hey, Joe's behind the plate. Set up a couple more inches inside. I was like, 'Are you kidding me? Joe hates me.' He's like, 'No, no, no, no, no, no. Joe loves me.'

"I go, 'He hasn't given us the corner all day.' He's like, 'Don't worry about it.' He literally throws 10 pitches and strikes out three guys. Joe rings up all three guys. Eight out of the nine pitches were at least three to four inches inside, not even close. Guys were throwing bats and everything. Joe walks off the field …

"I get back into the clubhouse and I'm like, 'What the (expletive) just happened just right now?' And Wagner just winks at me. I'm like, 'What's the secret?' He's like, 'Eh, Joe loves antique cars so every time he comes into town I lend him my '57 Chevy so he can drive it around so then he opens up the strike zone for me.'"

Joe West’s response?

He filed a defamation lawsuit against him last year, alleging that not only is it untrue, but that Paul Lo Duca fabricated the entire story for attention.

Unfortunately for Paul Lo Duca, the truth wasn’t on his side. Not only did Billy Wagner submit an affidavit where he denied that the conversation ever occurred, but Joe West was only the home-plate umpire once when Wagner and Lo Duca played together in 2006-2007.

Even worse?

Wagner never pitched in the game, ensuring that the story was a lie.

Armed with the facts and truth on his side, Joe West pursued monetary damages in the lawsuit — eventually being awarded $500,000 by a judge earlier this week.

Here’s the breakdown (Source):

  • West was awarded $250,000 for “past mental anguish and emotional distress.”

  • West was awarded $250,000 to “compensate for expenses he will need to incur in retaining a public relations firm to formulate and operationalize a sufficient reputation remediation plan.’’

So why exactly was Joe West awarded $500,000?

Given the story was picked up by major outlets like ESPN, CBS, and more, reputational damage is an obvious factor. But that’s often difficult to put a value on.

Instead, Joe West argued that when he breaks the record for the most games ever umpired by anyone in MLB history later this year, that he will be a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame, which would enable him to earn at least $250,000 per year in speaking engagements and card shows (Source).

That’s wild.

Ultimately, today’s email is less of an analysis and more of a story, but still, there is a lesson to be learned — always tell the truth :)

Have a great day, and we’ll talk tomorrow.

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