Robert Allan Davidson (born August 3, 1952) is a former umpire in Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "Balkin' Bob" and "Balk-a-Day Bob" for his tendency to liberally invoke baseball's balk rule, Davidson was an umpire on the National League (NL) staff from 1982 to 1999, and he was on the combined MLB umpiring staff from 2005 to 2016. He worked one World Series (1992) and several other postseason series. A former baseball player at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD), Davidson spent several years umpiring in the minor leagues before he was promoted to the NL in 1982. In 1999, he was one of nearly two dozen umpires to participate in a mass resignation that was intended as a union bargaining tactic. The maneuver backfired when baseball officials simply replaced those umpires. During four years away from professional baseball, Davidson hosted a sports radio show and worked as a college baseball umpire. Davidson returned to minor-league umpiring in 2003. After prolonged negotiations and legal battles, baseball officials promoted Davidson back to the major leagues in 2007. Early life After graduating from Duluth East High School in Duluth, Minnesota, Davidson played baseball at the University of Minnesota Duluth. In the mid-1970s, Davidson went to umpiring school in St. Petersburg, Florida, with a friend and former Duluth East and UMD baseball teammate. Davidson graduated at the top of his class at the umpire academy, and he was given an assignment in the minor leagues. Davidson spent eight years as a minor-league umpire, and his assignments included the Midwest League, Florida State League, Southern League and the American Association. He also umpired in the Florida Instructional League and in a winter league in the Dominican Republic during those years. MLB career Davidson was on the full-time umpiring staff for the National League (NL) from 1982 to 1999. He wore uniform number 31 during his career in the NL. Davidson officiated in the 1992 World Series, as well as the National League Championship Series in 1988, 1991 and 1996. He also worked in the National League Division Series in 1995, 1998 and 2009, and in the 1987, 1993, and 2014 All-Star Games. Nicknamed "Balkin' Bob" or "Balk-a-day-Bob" due to his frequent balk calls, Davidson was voted by players and managers as one of the worst umpires in MLB, placing fourth-worst in a Sports Illustrated poll in 2011. Resignation Davidson resigned from the NL staff