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John Bertrand " Jocko" Conlan (December 6, 1899 – April 16, 1989) was an American baseball umpire who worked in the National League (NL) from 1941 to 1965. He had a brief career as an outfielder with the Chicago White Sox before entering umpiring. He umpired in five World Series and six All-Star Games. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974 by the Veterans Committee.
Conlan began his major league career in as a center fielder for the Chicago White Sox. In , however, Conlan was presented with an unusual opportunity. During a game against the St. Louis Browns, umpire Red Ormsby fell ill due to the heat. In those days, only two umpires covered typical regular-season games, and a player with a reputation for honesty might be pressed into service if one umpire became incapacitated. Conlan was asked to fill in, and took to it well. The following year Conlan made the transition from player to umpire complete, beginning in the minor leagues.
Conlan was known for several trademarks: Instead of a regular dress tie like most umpires of the day wore, Conlan wore a natty bow tie for his career. Conlan further distinguished himself by making "out" calls with his left hand instead of his right. He was also the last NL umpire allowed to wear the outside chest protector, instead of the inside protector that all other NL umpires except Beans Reardon were using by then.
Manager Casey Stengel said that he admired Conlan's performance both as a player and as an umpire. He managed Conlan with the Toledo Mud Hens and described a time when Conlan broke his leg sliding into third base. He scored a run before telling anyone that he had been hurt. Though he was hitting .292 when he got hurt, Stengel gave him half of a $1,000 bonus he was supposed to get for batting .300. Stengel later said, "And as a reward for the $500 bonus I once gave him, he used to chase me oftener than anyone than any other manager in the league. But I admired him for his courage as a player and an official."
The book (2004) includes short stories from former Dodger pitcher Carl Erskine. Conlan is prominent in many of these stories.
Upon Conlan's retirement, NL president Warren Giles said, "I know of no one who has been more dedicated to his profession, more loyal to the game in which he has been such a big party, and I hate to see him hang up his spikes."
Conlan was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Committee on Baseball Veterans in . He was the fourth umpire chosen, and the first NL umpire since Bill Klem in 1953.
He was never issued an umpire number, having officiated before this occurred.
Conlan underwent heart surgery after becoming ill while watching the first game of the 1974 World Series. He died on April 16th, 1989 at a hospital in Scottsdale, Arizona. Jocko Conlan was 89 years old.
His son John Bertrand Conlan served as a U.S. representative from Arizona from 1973 to 1977.
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Categories: 1899 Births, 1989 Deaths, National Baseball Hall Of Fame Inductees, Major League Baseball Center Fielders, Chicago White Sox Players, Major League Baseball Umpires, National League Umpires, Baseball Players From Chicago, Montreal Royals Players, Newark Bears Players, Rochester Tribe Players, Toledo Mud Hens Players, Wichita Izzies Players, Wichita Jobbers Players, 20th-century American Sportsmen
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