DES MOINES, Iowa - A Major League Baseball umpire and Iowa native is dead.
Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred announced the death of 52-year-old Eric Cooper Sunday afternoon.
Cooper died from a blood clot after knee surgery.
Cooper played baseball at Des Moines Hoover High School and graduated from Iowa State University in 1989. He leaves a wife and two sons behind.
A major league umpire for 21 years including this season, Cooper most recently worked the ALDS between the Yankees and Twins earlier this month.
He joined the Major Leagues in 1999 after a minor league career that began in 1990.