Umpires File Charges

Baseball umpires angry with the computer system used to track their calls behind the plate filed unfair labor practice charges against owners Monday with the National Labor Relations Board.

In a 21-page letter sent to the NLRB’s regional office in New York, the World Umpires Assn. accused management of violating the labor law by refusing to provide information about the computer system, which umpires claim is inaccurate.

“The office of the commissioner has shielded the Questec system from inspection, and from critical inspection by experts trained in the physics of baseball and engineering,” union lawyer Joel Smith wrote to Celeste Mattina, the NLRB’s New York regional director.

The next step is for the NLRB office to decide whether to issue a complaint. If it does, the matter would go before an administrative law judge.

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The teenager who attacked Kansas City Royal coach Tom Gamboa on the field in Chicago was ordered to stand trial in juvenile court. A date will be set today for a trial on a felony charge of aggravated battery. The 15-year-old boy was not identified.... Cincinnati Red catcher Jason LaRue will have season-ending surgery today to repair a hernia.