Bruce Neal Froemming (/ˈfrɛmɪŋ/; born September 28, 1939) is Major League Baseball Special Assistant to the Vice President on Umpiring, after having served as an umpire in Major League Baseball. He first umpired in the National League in 1971, and from 2000 to 2007 worked throughout both major leagues. Early in the 2007 season, Froemming tied Bill Klem for the most seasons umpired (Klem's final season, 1941, included only 11 games as a substitute). Previously, on August 16, 2006, Froemming umpired his 5,000th game between the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, making him the second umpire to reach that milestone; Klem retired after 5,374 games. Froemming now stands third on the all-time list of games umpired, having been passed when Joe West officiated his 5,164th Major Leag