Nicholas Gregory Bremigan (April 4, 1945 – March 28, 1989) was an American
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
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), ...
who worked 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 his death.
Biography
Born in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, Bremigan grew up in
Rochester, New York
Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...
, and graduated from
Irondequoit High School
Irondequoit High School (IHS) is a public high school in the town of Irondequoit, a major suburb of Rochester, New York.
History
Irondequoit District Number 3 renamed their original ''Irondequoit Union Free School'' as Irondequoit High School in 1 ...
.
[ In 1965, he received a bachelor's degree in education from the ]University of Buffalo
The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 1846 ...
, and became a teacher at Monroe High School in Rochester.[ He later gave up teaching and undertook a career in umpiring,][ with stints in the ]Florida State League
The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...
(1969–1970), Eastern League (1971), and International League
The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...
(1972–1973).
Bremigan began umpiring in the American League (AL) in 1974, and umpired 2122 regular season AL games during his career. He also officiated in the 1980 World Series
The 1980 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) season. The 77th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the National League (NL) champion 1980 Philadelphia Phill ...
, and in the American League Championship Series
The American League Championship Series (ALCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the two winners of the American ...
in 1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...
, 1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...
, 1983
The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...
, and 1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
**Spain and Portugal ente ...
. He also worked the All-Star games of 1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
and 1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...
.
Bremigan was one of the umpires during the famous Pine Tar Incident
The Pine Tar Incident (also known as the Pine Tar Game) was a controversial incident in during an American League baseball game played between the Kansas City Royals and New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in New York City on Sunday, July 24, 198 ...
with George Brett
George Howard Brett (born May 15, 1953) is an American former professional baseball player who played all of his 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a third baseman for the Kansas City Royals.
Brett's 3,154 career hits are second-mos ...
in 1983. In 1986, Bremigan became the first umpire to eject a manager from a League Championship Series game, when he ejected Gene Mauch
Gene William Mauch (November 18, 1925 – August 8, 2005) was an American professional baseball player and manager, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a second baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers (, ), Pittsburgh Pirates (), Chicago Cubs ...
of the California Angels
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...
from Game 3 against the Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
.
Bremigan died of a heart attack at age 43 in Garland, Texas
Garland is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is located northeast of Dallas and is a part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is located within Dallas County except for small portions located in Collin and Rockwall Counties. At the ...
. He had umpired an exhibition game the day before his death.
AL umpires wore Bremigan's number 2 on their sleeves in his memory throughout the 1989 season. No AL umpire wore the number again through 1999. Umpire Jerry Crawford
Gerald Joseph Crawford (born August 13, 1947) is a former umpire in Major League Baseball. He first umpired in the National League from 1977 to 1999, then worked in both major leagues from 2000 to 2010.
Career
He was a crew chief from 1998 thro ...
wore number 2 in the National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
, and kept it when the umpires from both leagues merged into one staff in 2000.
See also
* List of Major League Baseball umpires
The following is a list of major league baseball umpires. The list includes umpires who worked in any of four 19th century major leagues (American Association, National Association, Players' League, Union Association), one defunct 20th century m ...
References
Further reading
Obituary
at The Deadball Era
External links
The Baseball Cube
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bremigan, Nick
1945 births
1989 deaths
Buffalo Bulls baseball players
Sportspeople from Philadelphia
Sportspeople from Rochester, New York
Major League Baseball umpires
Burials in New York (state)
American high school teachers
Schoolteachers from New York (state)