An hour before the first pitch at Oracle Park, Ed Montague takes his customary seat in the back row of the press box. From his perch, he has an unobstructed view directly over the shoulder of the home plate ump. As the game progresses, he enters notes onto a sheet of paper on the table in front of him.
But his is not your typical scorecard. Rather, it’s a report card used in his duties as an MLB Observer of Umpires. “I watch each guy’s positioning, hustle, knowledge of the rules, and how they handle situations that arise during the game,” he said. “Most of them rate out at around 97 percent, when you look at all the replays we have today.”
No question, Montague is the perfect man for the job. To do it, he draws upon 35 years of experience at the least popular position on the diamond. No one ever applauds an umpire. The men in blue hear only boos when a close call goes against the home team. “It’s a thankless job, to be sure,” he said. “But it’s one that provides countless memories if you stay with it long enough.”
Montague has memories aplenty. Born in San Francisco in 1948 and raised in Daly City from age four, he is the product of a true baseball family. His dad, Ed Sr., was a shortstop for the Cleveland Indians from 1928 to ’32, and later served as the longtime scout for the New York Giants who signed Willie Mays.
The junior Montague immersed himself in big league baseball as a youth. At age 13, he started 10 years of service as a vendor at Candlestick Park. “I sold everything from yearbooks, pencils and scorecards to hot dogs, peanuts and Cracker Jack,” he said. “But the best part was I got to watch Giants baseball first-hand on a regular basis, and saw Willie play so many games.”
A first baseman/outfielder at Westmoor High School and later in semi-pro leagues around the Bay Area, Montague naturally had big league aspirations himself. “I was a good fielder, but I couldn’t hit the curveball,” said Montague. “My dad said I might make it to A-ball, but that’s as far as I’d likely go. If anyone knew what he was talking about, it was him.”
With that, Montague changed his focus. “I read a story about umpires in The Sporting News and became inspired,” he said. “So in 1972, I took off in my Toyota Corolla and headed cross-country to Barney Deary’s Umpire Development School in Florida. From there I got assigned to Spring Training, and then to the Arizona Instructional League.”
After further stints in the California League and Pacific Coast League, he made his big-league debut behind the plate at Candlestick in 1974 and embarked on a magnificent umpiring career in which he worked 4,369 regular-season games, along with six World Series and four All-Star Games.
He was the first base umpire at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati on Sept. 11, 1985, when Pete Rose stroked his 4,192nd career hit, passing Ty Cobb for the most all-time. “On a personal level, it was a special moment because my dad played against Cobb, and my uncle Fred owned a minor league team with him,” he said. “The celebration must have lasted 10 minutes, with fireworks exploding and the crowd going crazy. It was like the climactic scene of ‘The Natural.’”
He was umping at second base in San Francisco on May 28, 2006, when Barry Bonds struck his 715th homer, passing Babe Ruth on the career list. “Another one that was like a movie scene, with Giants fans going bonkers,” he recalled. “When he came back to the outfield for the next inning, I went over to shake his hand and he gave me a big hug, as if I had anything to do with it.”
Then there was that day at spring training years ago when country music legend Garth Brooks had a “tryout” with the San Diego Padres. “He brought out the lineup cards, and I told him I was a big fan. I was umping at first base when Bruce Bochy put him in to pinch run. I said, ‘Now don’t get picked off, Garth.’ Sure enough, a lefty was pitching, and he picked him off by at least five feet. It was an exhibition game, so I signaled ‘safe.’ He got up to thank me, the first baseman tagged him again, and I signaled ‘safe’ again,” said Montague. “We’ve been friends ever since.”
Montague is no stranger to showbiz himself. He’s a skilled guitarist. More so, he’s a professional magician. Hand him a deck of playing cards, and he’ll dazzle you with a series of tricks worthy of “Penn & Teller: Fool Us.” “I got a Sneaky Pete’s magic set as a boy and was immediately hooked,” he said. “During my umpiring days, I would perform at veterans’ homes, birthday parties and other special occasions. It was a good way to make a few extra bucks, especially in the minors where we weren’t paid much.”
In fact, back in the day, he fantasized about a way to merge his two passions, using his friend Tom Lasorda, the Dodgers manager, as his subject. “Lasorda was notorious for riding the umpire during a game,” he said. “So I pictured myself calling a game in front of a packed house at Dodger Stadium when Tommy runs out to argue a call. Instead of giving him the thumb, I wave my hands in the air, chant “abracadabra” and — POOF — he vanishes in a puff of smoke.”
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