| Augie Donatelli |
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Donatelli was born in Heilwood, Pennsylvania and raised in Bakerton . After enjoying a 14-game career as a Minor League Infielder in 1938 , he served in the Army Air Forces during World War II and spent 15 months as a German Prisoner Of War after flying 18 missions as a tailgunner. He began umpiring Softball games while a POW, and started officiating in the minor leagues in 1946. During his major league career, he umpired in the World Series in 1955 (outfield only), 1957 , 1961 , 1967 and 1973 . He also officiated in the National League Championship Series in 1969 and 1972 , and in the 3-game playoff series to determine the NL champion in both 1959 and 1962 . He umpired in the All-Star game in 1953, 1959 (first game), 1962 (first game) and 1969. Donatelli was involved in numerous other notable games. He umpired in nine No-hitter s, an NL record until Paul Pryor worked in his 10th in 1978 ; he called balls and strikes for four of the nine, including Ken Johnson 's game of April 23, 1964 in which he became the first pitcher in history to lose a nine-inning no-hitter, by a score of 1-0. In Game Four of the 1957 World Series, he awarded Milwaukee Braves pinch-hitter Nippy Jones first base in the 10th inning after determining that there was shoe polish on the ball, showing that Jones had been hit; a pinch runner scored the game-tying run, and the Braves went on to win both the game and he Series. In a 1952 game between the New York Giants and St. Louis Cardinals , Donatelli ejected the Giants' Bob Elliott for arguing a called strike two, then ejected Elliott's replacement Bobby Hofman for disputing a called third strike. He was part of the crew on May 2, 1954 , when Stan Musial hit five Home Run s in a doubleheader; he was behind the plate in the first game, when Musial hit three of the five. He was also in the umpiring crew for the May 30, 1956 doubleheader between the Braves and Chicago Cubs , in which the teams combined for a record 15 home runs; the Braves' Bobby Thomson hit a pair in each game, and Hank Aaron and Eddie Mathews each homered in both contests as well. He also umpired in the April 30, 1961 game in which Willie Mays hit four home runs. Donatelli is widely regarded as having been a primary force in the creation of the first umpires' union, the Major League Umpires Association , in 1964. He lost his position as crew chief immediately afterward, though NL president Warren Giles denied that Donatelli's involvement with the union was the cause. Donatelli died at age 75 in St. Petersburg, Florida . |
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