Jen Pawol Makes History: First Female Umpire in MLB Game

Jen Pawol Makes History in the Major Leagues

Jen Pawol has made a historic milestone by becoming the first woman to umpire a regular season game in the Major Leagues. His anticipated debut took place as a first base umpire in the first game of a Saturday doubleheader between the Atlanta Braves and the Miami Marlins. Pawol enjoyed a quiet first inning, watching Braves right-hander Hurston Waldrep strike out the first two batters before Agustín Ramírez lined out to third baseman Nacho Álvarez Jr. The Braves were also retired in order by Miami’s right-handed pitcher, Ryan Gusto, in the bottom of the first inning, with Pawol not needing to make any calls at first base. As a first base umpire, Pawol’s responsibility was to check Waldrep’s hands for foreign substances after the inning. During that brief encounter, he also appeared to receive a warm greeting from Braves catcher Sean Murphy on his way to the dugout. Pawol will work at third base in the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader. He will be in the spotlight when he calls the pitches behind the plate in the final game of the series on Sunday. There was a lot of anticipation for his historic debut on Saturday. A crowd of photographers gathered as they waited for the umpires to come onto the field from their entrance ramp near the Marlins dugout. Marlins manager Clayton McCullough and Braves bench coach Walt Weiss greeted Pawol as lineups were exchanged at home plate before the game. Pawol then ran down the first base line. He shook hands with Marlins first base coach Tyler Smarslok before taking his position in the right field line for the first pitch. Pawol said on Thursday that she was “overwhelmed with emotion” when she was notified that she would be making her debut in the Major Leagues this weekend.

“It was super emotional to finally experience that phone call that I had been waiting for and working to achieve for quite some time, and I felt super fulfilled, I feel like a fully charged battery ready to go,” said Pawol.

Jen Pawol

Pawol, 48, has been working in the minor leagues since being assigned to the Gulf Coast League in 2016. She was assigned to the Triple-A championship game in 2023 and worked spring training games in 2024 and again this year. Pawol, originally from New Jersey, had only a few days to prepare for Saturday’s double-header. She said she was informed of her long-awaited promotion during a conference call on Wednesday with Director of Referee Development Rich Rieker and Vice President of Referee Operations Matt McKendry. Pawol was selected three times as a softball player in the conference at Hofstra. She worked as an NCAA softball umpire from 2010 to 2016. Pawol’s rise to make MLB history came 28 years after the NBA’s gender barrier for game officials was broken and 10 years after the NFL hired its first full-time female official. The men’s World Cup of soccer hired a female referee for the first time three years ago. The NHL has not had any women as on-ice officials.