The fans speak out.(Letters To The Editor)(Letter to the Editor)

While reading old box scores in Baseball Digest, I noticed that on many occasions there were only three umpires listed.

I'm wondering when the fourth umpire was added for major league games and, also, how the three umpires were positioned in the old days.

Tom Benson

Brooklyn Park, Minn.

By 1912, two umpires were required to cover each game in the American and National Leagues. In 1933, three-man crews were required for the first time during the regular season, and in 1952, four-man crews became standard in both leagues.

When the use of three umpires was standardized in the 1930s, the leagues differed initially in how base umpires rotated around the infield.

In the American League, with a man on first, umpires were stationed at second and third. The National League put umpires at first and second when three-man crews were employed.