WEST PALM BEACH.- Jen Pawol will take an important step toward breaking another gender barrier as a Major League Baseball umpire (MLB) on Saturday, becoming the first woman to work a Major League preseason game in 17 years.
The umpire, 47 years old and originally from New Jersey, will work the bases during the exhibition game between the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals in West Palm Beach, Florida. He is among 24 minor league umpires assigned full-time during spring training.
Last year, 21 of 26 umpires assigned full-time to the spring training schedule were called up during the regular season.
Ria Cortesio was the last woman to work exhibition games in 2007. She spent nine years in the minor leagues, including the last five in the Double-A Southern League before she was released after the 2007 season.
Before reaching the MLB:
Pawol started in the Gulf Coast League in 2016 and moved to the New York/Pen League in 2017 before being promoted to the Midwest League after his first two weeks of the 2018 campaign. He worked the South Atlantic League in the 2019, the High-A Midwest League in 2021 and the Eastern League of the Double-A and Triple-A International and Pacific Coast Leagues last year.
“As a hitter, a longtime athlete, it was incredible to hit over .300,” the former Hofstra softball player said this month. “But as an umpire, we have to hit 1,000 every night and the challenge is fascinating.”
The MLB’s decision comes 27 years after the NBA broke the gender barrier, nine years after the NFL and two years after the World Cup did so.
Source: AP
