Postema Charges Sex Discrimination

Veteran minor league umpire Pam Postema filed a federal sex discrimination complaint Thursday, charging that the American and National leagues passed her over for promotion from the minors because of her gender.

The complaint was filed with the U.S. Equal Employment and Opportunity Commission and also listed the triple-A Alliance of Professional Baseball Clubs and the Baseball Office for Umpire Development.

Postema, 36, was fired from working as a minor league umpire after last season when she was turned down for promotion by the major leagues for the third consecutive year. She umpired 13 minor-league seasons and was the first woman to reach the triple-A level.

“I believe I was not hired as a major league umpire because of my sex, female,” she told reporters at a news conference in an attorney’s office.

“I’m devastated, disappointed, angry, upset--because I know I’m highly qualified for the major leagues,” said Postema, who was in uniform and held her umpire’s mask. “I deserve to be out there.”

Rich Levin, a spokesman for major league baseball, said that officials of the two leagues had not seen the suit.

Postema said in an affidavit that she had received verbal evaluations from umpire supervisors from the Baseball Office of Umpire Development indicating that her performance was “at least satisfactory.”

She added she was given her first written evaluation after last season, with the overall rating above average. Postema said her rating apparently was negatively affected by her having ejected 14 players last season and added that each of those ejections was warranted.

The 1989 evaluation adds: “At this point in your career, with 13 years in umpiring . . . it is the consensus that the prospect of you becoming a major league umpire is questionable.”

Postema had been in triple-A since 1983 and had umpired several major league spring training games.