“Dreams Come True”: Female Umpire Jen Pawol Breaks Gender Barriers in Her First Major League Game

During the pre-game introductions, the announcement of the umpire's name rarely elicits a standing ovation from the crowd. However, Jen Pawol is indeed a unique figure.

Today at Truist Park in Atlanta, during the first game of a doubleheader between the Marlins and the Braves, Pawol made history as the first female umpire to officiate a Major League game. She served as first base umpire in the afternoon game and third base umpire in the night game, and she will be the home plate umpire in tomorrow's series finale.

“I think it hit me when we stepped onto the field,” Pawol said. “Our crew walked onto the field together early, and Chris Guccione (the crew chief) and I looked at each other, and I said, ‘This is it! This is what we’ve worked for!’ So I think that’s when I realized everything, and then we had a very special finish. In the top of the ninth inning, I completed the last pitcher check, and we hugged each other. At that moment, I really felt it.”

“It felt amazing when we stepped onto the field, and it seemed like quite a few people started to clap and shout my name, which was really exciting and emotional.”

At 48 years old, Pawol has been a professional umpire for the past ten seasons, starting in 2016 from the rookie-level Gulf Coast League.

She described feeling overwhelmed with emotion when she received the news earlier this week that she would be officiating in a Major League game.

“It was the call I had been hoping for and working towards for a long time, and it made me really excited,” Pawol told the Associated Press earlier this week. “I felt like I was charged up. I felt like a battery that was fully charged, ready to go.”

Pawol, who left the field with a smile after the game, has had these vibrant emotions within her for a week.

“It’s just incredible,” she exclaimed. “Dreams finally came true today, and I’m still living it. I’m so grateful to my family, to Major League Baseball for creating such an amazing work environment. I thank all the umpires I’ve worked with... it’s a wonderful spirit of camaraderie. We had a great time on the field—we worked hard, but we also enjoyed ourselves. I’m very thankful.”

Today is not the first time this Major League trailblazer has left her mark in baseball history.

Pawol became the first female umpire to officiate in the Triple-A championship game in 2023 and earlier that season became the first woman to officiate a Triple-A game in 34 years. She is also the first woman to officiate a spring training game since 2007. That same year, she was added to the list of umpires promoted to Major League Baseball.

For Pawol, this has been over 30 years—and more than 1,200 games—of hard work. She recalls starting her officiating career in the early 1990s when a friend invited her to umpire a softball game. For Pawol, the decision was effortless, as she was already an athlete in softball and later served as a catcher at Hofstra University, where she was a three-time All-Conference selection.

From 2010 to 2016, she served as an umpire in NCAA softball for seven years, during which time she received an invitation from Major League umpire Ted Barrett to attend an umpire training camp.

After attending several camps and going to the Major League Baseball umpire training camp in Vero Beach, Florida, Pawol became a professional ball and strike umpire. But Barrett warned her of the challenges she might face on this journey, predicting it could take her 10 years or more to reach her goal of working in the Major Leagues.

“I warned her, ‘Listen, this is what you’re going to face. You’re going to spend 10 years in the minors before you can step onto a Major League field,’” Barrett said.

Pawol will enjoy every moment at Truist Park this weekend, where she has a large group of supporters—including over 30 personal guests at today’s game.

These supporters include current Major League players, coaches, her fellow umpires, and some women both inside and outside the field. The number of supporters is countless.

“I want to thank all the Major League and minor league umpires,” she said. “In addition, dozens, if not hundreds... people from our industry have been reaching out to me. I’ve received texts from many softball umpire friends. There’s also a well-known figure from another sport, NFL referee Sarah Thomas, who has become a good friend of mine. She has been calling me... it’s just incredible.”

Guccione called this moment one of the proudest of his career.

“This is one of the proudest moments I’ve experienced in my career,” he said. “I mean, I’ve been fortunate to officiate in the playoffs, I’ve done two World Series, and the All-Star Game, and this moment is just as significant... It gives me goosebumps just thinking about the importance of it; I’m sitting here, and it just touches me.”

“The significance of this event and the effort she has put in. I have a daughter, and she was very excited to meet Jen. This is a great example for girls and women... she’s an amazing person who loves to have fun and works hard.”

Guccione and Pawol posed for a photo wearing her umpire cap after the press conference and then returned to their locker room to prepare for the second game of the doubleheader. That cap will leave Atlanta and head to Cooperstown to be permanently displayed in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

As for Pawol, she hopes this historic moment will serve as a beacon of hope for the women and girls who follow in her footsteps.

“Get out there and give it a try,” Pawol advised young girls aspiring to be umpires.

“First, get out there and fully commit yourself, and have some tenacity to stick with it. It’s a long road that doesn’t happen overnight, and it’s not accomplished with just one promotion. You need to do countless things. Do this, then that. Then this, then that. I think a lot of people give up along the way. So just keep going, make friends, have fun, and be bold in trying.”

“I recognize the importance of this, and I realize its significance,” Pawol said earlier. “I believe I will be a very good role model and representative, telling young girls, women, boys, and men that this is achievable.”