Kaiser, umpire who quit during labor talks, dies at 72

ROCHESTER, N.Y. » Former major league umpire Ken Kaiser, a colorful figure between the lines who briefly moonlighted as a professional wrestler to make ends meet while working in the minor leagues, has died. He was 72.

The World Umpires Association said Thursday he died in his hometown of Rochester, New York, on Tuesday. Kaiser had diabetes for years.

An American League umpire from 197799, Kaiser umpired two World Series, one AllStar Game and several playoff series.

The 6-foot-3 Kaiser, who wrote in his book, “Planet of the Umps: A Baseball Life from behind the Plate,” that when he graduated from high school in 1964 his “longrange plan was lunch.” He weighed just under 300 pounds and often was criticized for that portly physique during the more 3,000 big-league games he umpired.

Former White Sox announcer Jimmy Piersall once called him “a gutless, lazy whale,” while fellow former umpire and mentor Ron Luciano described him as “like a barrel on which two arms had been stuck on backwards.”

In his book, published in 2003, Kaiser wrote of his decade in the minor leagues and off-season jobs that included bar bouncer, bank teller, and that short stint as the wrestler dubbed “Hatchet Man.”

In 1986, Kaiser was voted most colorful umpire in the American League in a poll conducted by The Sporting News.

Kaiser’s umpiring career ended when he joined a group of umpires who submitted their resignations in 1999 during labor negotiations, a gamble by the Major League Umpires Association that failed. He was not rehired. than

Girardi says ‘good possibility’ Montgomery starts Sunday

TORONTO » Yankees manager Joe Girardi said Thursday there’s “a really good possibility” that rookie left-hander Jordan Montgomery will be recalled from Triple-A to start against the Boston Red Sox on Sunday night.

Montgomery, 7-6 with a 4.05 ERA in 21 starts, would start in place of left-hander CC Sabathia, who left Tuesday’s loss at Toronto after three innings because of soreness in his arthritic right knee.

“It’s a really good possibility Monty on Sunday,” Girardi said.

A scan Wednesday showed no new damage, but Girardi said his inclination was Sabathia would not be able to start after leaving Tuesday’s game “in a substantial amount of pain.” The 17-year veteran is 9-5 with a it will be 4.05 ERA in 19 starts.

Cardinals ask for help in finding the rally cat

ST. LOUIS » The St. Louis Cardinals are looking for their rally cat. The feisty feline became an internet sensation Wednesday night, sprinting onto the field at Busch Stadium with the bases loaded for the Cardinals with two outs in the sixth inning. The cat emerged from near the visitors’ dugout on the third-base side and raced into the outfield, the fur on its tail standing on end.

Kansas City was leading 5-4 at the time and play was delayed for a couple minutes while the grounds crew collected the cat. On the first pitch after play resumed, Yadier Molina hit a grand slam off Peter Moylan to give the Cardinals an 8-5 lead.