Crawford caught briefly in the Phillies’ organization, then umpired around the Philadelphia area to stay in the game. His slow, deliberate, strong calls and low crouch while touching the catcher’s back with his hands characterized his umpiring style. One of the founders of the ML Umpires’ Association, Crawford was asked to work the 1975 WS by umpire supervisor Fred Fleig. Shag refused because it had been agreed that the Series would use a rotation system for umpires. According to Crawford, he was fired for his refusal. “They said they retired me,” he said, “but in my personal opinion, they dumped me.”
