Robert Dale Ford (born July 6, 1942 in

Jonesborough, Tennessee Jonesborough (historically also Jonesboro) is a town in, and the county seat of, Washington County, Tennessee, in the Southeastern United States. Its population was 5,860 as of 2020. It is "Tennessee's oldest town". Jonesborough is part of the J ...

) is an American politician and former

baseball umpire In baseball, the umpire is the person charged with officiating the game, including beginning and ending the game, enforcing the rules of the game and the grounds, making judgment calls on plays, and handling the disciplinary actions. The term is ...

. He was a member of the

Tennessee House of Representatives The Tennessee House of Representatives is the lower house of the Tennessee General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Tennessee. Constitutional requirements According to the state constitution of 1870, this body is to consis ...

, representing the 6th district from 2006 to 2012. He was a member of the Agriculture and Transportation Committees. Ford was an umpire in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

from 1974 to 1999.

Umpiring career

Ford was an

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

from 1974 until 1999 (wearing uniform number 20 when the AL adopted them in 1980) when he, along with several other umpires, was not retained by

following the

1999 Major League Umpires Association mass resignation The 1999 Major League Umpires Association mass resignation was a labor tactic used by 68 Major League Baseball (MLB) umpires, including 66 members of the Major League Umpires Association (MLUA), the official umpires union at the time. Unable to stri ...

. After having a long umpiring career, Ford decided he was ready to retire. He was granted retirement status in 2001. He was well known for being behind the plate for Game 6 of the

1986 World Series The 1986 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1986 Major League Baseball season, 1986 season. The 83rd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the National Lea ...

for

Bill Buckner William Joseph Buckner (December 14, 1949 – May 27, 2019) was an American first baseman and left fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for five teams from through , most notably the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red ...

's error; for being behind the plate during a 1993 game between the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

and Texas Rangers where

Robin Ventura Robin Mark Ventura (born July 14, 1967) is an American former professional baseball third baseman and manager. Ventura played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago White Sox, New York Mets, New York Yankees and Los Angeles Do ...

charged the mound after being hit by a

Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanning four decades, Ryan ...

pitch, provoking a bench-clearing brawl in which Ryan repeatedly punched Ventura; for ejecting

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

manager

Earl Weaver Earl Sidney Weaver (August 14, 1930 – January 19, 2013) was an American professional baseball manager, author, and television broadcaster. After playing in minor league baseball, he retired without playing in Major League Baseball (MLB). He be ...

from a game during the national anthem; and for ejecting

Reggie Jackson Reginald Martinez Jackson (born May 18, 1946) is an American former professional baseball right fielder who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City / Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, and Cali ...

from a game only to have Jackson begin throwing all the contents of the dugout onto the playing field. During his career, he was rated between first and twenty-fifth. Ford said "When umpires are rated low, you know they haven't kissed up to anyone." When looking back on his MLB service, Rep. Ford says, "For an old country boy with no particular brains and definitely not good looking, I felt like that was OK." Umpire union leader and Philadelphia attorney Richie Phillips brought a lawsuit against

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

manager

Billy Martin Alfred Manuel Martin Jr. (May 16, 1928 – December 25, 1989), commonly called "Billy", was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager who, in addition to leading other teams, was five times the manager of the New York Yan ...

when Martin stated that Ford was a "stone liar, someone I'll bet $100 doesn't know how to read." Ford later sued the Texas Rangers after he fell while leaving

Arlington Stadium Arlington Stadium was a baseball stadium located in Arlington, Texas, United States, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. It served as the home for the Texas Rangers (MLB) from 1972 until 1993, after which the team moved into The Bal ...

. Ford also sued Major League Baseball for retirement pay and interest; he was one of the umpires who were not rehired in the wake of the union's failed 1999 resignation strategy. In 2012 he was umpiring in the Appalachian League, a rookie-level league in the minor league system.

Political career

In 2002, Ford ran in the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

for Tennessee State Representative District 6 against an incumbent, David Davis. Davis edged Ford by a margin of 3,783-3,524. Following his defeat, Ford said, "I really don't have a desire in pursuing it again. The way the political system is in this country, it's hard to get anything done." In 2006, after Davis announced he would not run again but would instead seek the

US House The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

District 1 seat for Tennessee, Ford again ran for State Representative. This time he ran against Joshua Arrowood, Ethan Flynn, Patti Jarrett, Michael Malone, and Lee Sowers in the Republican primary. There was no opposition in the 2006 general election. In the 2012 GOP Primary, he was unseated by state Rep. Micah Van Huss, R-Jonesborough. In 2020, he unsuccessfully challenged incumbent Scott Buckingham for Washington County, Tennessee assessor of property in the GOP primary race. Ford lost by 138 votes, gathering 5,006 vs. 5,144 for the incumbent.

Political philosophy

He is pro-life. Fiscally, he says that he is interested in increasing the state budget tremendously for education, emergency preparedness, law enforcement, health care, and welfare. He is also for increasing taxes on alcohol and tobacco. He also seeks a tax on internet sales. He supports the limits of contributions that can be given to candidates, though many claim that this goes against 1st Amendment rights and is a protection for incumbents. He hopes to end “working the polls” by candidates and their workers. He supports increased pensions for law enforcement officers. He is a supporter of hate-crime laws. He is for nationalized education and against school choice. He supports minimum wage increases. He supports strong gun laws. Rep. Ford has worked closely with Tennessee's governor, Governor Phil Bredesen. He has worked on water and road issues. He works closely with the elderly and with veterans. He received an 'A' rating from the

NRA The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent gun rights lobbying organization while conti ...

, despite his support for strong gun control laws He also signed the

Americans for Tax Reform Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) is a politically conservative U.S. advocacy group whose stated goal is "a system in which taxes are simpler, flatter, more visible, and lower than they are today." According to ATR, "The government's power to control ...

Pledge to 'oppose and vote against all efforts to increase taxes'; however, he supports increasing the state budget and increasing taxes on alcohol, tobacco, and internet sales. He voted in committee to increase taxes on cigarettes (which is a disregard of his pledge against all tax increases).

Personal life

He lives in Jonesborough with his wife Joyce. He has 5 children. He is an Army veteran. He is a member the Hawthorne Church of the Brethren located in Johnson City, Tennessee, near Austin Springs.

References

External links

Official legislature site
- umpiring career
The Baseball CubeBaseballLibrary
- profile, career highlights an
SABR bibliographyAP: "Former Umpire Playing Political Hardball"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Dale 1942 births Living people Members of the Tennessee House of Representatives People from Jonesborough, Tennessee Major League Baseball umpires