
Within the concrete jungle of New York City, known for its iconic monuments and ceaseless traffic, a legal battle erupted within the world of professional baseball. On a seemingly inauspicious Wednesday, dismissed minor league umpire, Brandon Cooper, filed a lawsuit against Major League Baseball. The suit alleged sexual harassment by a female umpire alongside claims of gender and sexual orientation discrimination.
Cooper, whose lengthy tenure took him to the Arizona Complex League the preceding year, slung this legal pitch at both the MLB, recognized as America’s favorite pastime, and PDL Blue Inc., an associated corporate entity. His lawsuit paints a picture of a persistently unbalanced umpire crew enshrined in both the minor and major leagues.
According to the lawsuit, there has yet to be a woman adjudicating a regular season game in the pros, with the majority of umpires still being Caucasian males. Brought to light is the claim that in an attempt to rectify the lack of gender and racial diversity, MLB implemented a so-called ‘illegal diversity quota’. Cooper argues this resulted in women being favored for advancement, circumventing merit that should be the backbone of these decisions.
Joining the umpire training camps in both 2022 and 2023, Cooper claims that he was informed by esteemed figures in the baseball world – former umpire Ed Rapuano and umpire development supervisor Darren Spagnardi – that the MLB had committed to including at least a couple of women in their latest batch of 10 inductees.
Adding weight to the growing pile of allegations, Cooper reckoned that he was invited to spring training in 2023, only to be placed on a taxi squad and informed by Dusty Dellinger, senior manager of umpire administration, that women and minority candidates held the priority in new hirings.
Trouble escalated within the ranks when Gina Quartararo, an umpire previously operating in the Arizona Complex League and currently in the Florida State League, allegedly used homophobic slurs against Cooper and fellow umpire Kevin Bruno. Cooper claims his efforts to report Quartararo’s alleged misconduct to Dellinger were met with him being ordered to undergo sensitivity training. Further blows arrived when he was accused of violating the minor league’s anti-discrimination and harassment policy.
Another key player in this legal drama, Billy Bean, MLB’s senior vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion, is said to have met with Cooper. He allegedly told Cooper that Quartararo had painted herself as the victim, being the lone female umpire in the Arizona Complex League.
Cooper claimed he had video evidence of Quartararo’s misconduct, some of which was physical. However, when autumn’s chill swept across the city, he found himself unemployed. He was the only dismissal among the group of 26 new inductees.
The lawsuit revolves around allegations of an anti-male and anti-bisexual hostile work environment, and accuses MLB of wrongful termination, along with retaliation due to his gender and sexual orientation. It’s notable that the MLB headquarters are in New York, bringing this legal case under New York state and city law.
MLB has decided to step back from the batter’s box in this legal match, declining to comment on the ongoing litigation. Michael Teevan, the MLB spokesperson, has also stated they’re seeking a response from Quartararo. As it stands, this year Quartararo ranks among the nine women currently umpiring in the minor leagues.
Yet, as this storm brews, history is being made elsewhere. 2023 saw Jen Pawol make her mark on the field as the first woman to officiate a major league spring training game since 2007. She now works at Triple-A, just one stride away from the majors, primed to step up to the big leagues as a vacation or injury replacement.