Jen Pawol Set To Become First Woman To Umpire MLB Game During Weekend's Marlins-Braves Series
Pawol will be behind the plate for Marlins-Braves.
This weekend's series between the Miami Marlins and Atlanta Braves will be historic as Jen Pawol will become the first female umpire to work a regular-season MLB game in league history.
Major League Baseball made Pawol's call-up to The Show official on Wednesday afternoon.
The Marlins and Braves will play five games against one another between Thursday and Sunday, with Saturday featuring a double-header, which necessitates adding a fifth umpire.
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Pawol will umpire three games during the series in Atlanta, including both games of Saturday’s doubleheader and the series finale on Sunday, which is when she will be behind home plate.
The 48-year-old from New Jersey umpired softball games part-time for 11 years before attending the Minor League Baseball Umpire Training Academy in 2016. Pawol began her professional umpiring career in the Gulf Coast League in 2017.
In 2023, Pawol became the first female umpire to work at the Triple-A level in 34 years after working in both the Pacific Coast League and the International League. The following year, she became only the third woman to umpire an MLB spring training game, and the first to do so since Ria Cortesio in 2007.
In 2024, Pawol was reportedly added to the call-up list for the MLB, and after working spring training again in 2025, she's getting her call-up to The Show to umpire a regular-season contest.