Jen Pawol

Jennifer Pawol (born December 29, 1976)^[1] is an American baseball umpire who currently works in Minor League Baseball (MiLB), and is on the call-up list for Major League Baseball. She is just the seventh woman to work as a professional baseball umpire.^[2]

Jen Pawol
Pawol during an International League game at Werner Park in 2024
MLB – No. 95
Umpire
Born: (1976-12-29) December 29, 1976 (age 48) West Milford, New Jersey, U.S.
Crew information
Umpiring crew	Triple-A call-up list
Career highlights and awards
Special Assignments Triple-A National Championship Game (2023)
Medals Women's baseball Representing  United States Women's Baseball World Series 2001 Toronto Team

Early life

Attending West Milford High School in West Milford, New Jersey, Pawol played soccer and softball, attending Hofstra University on an athletic scholarship and playing as a catcher in Division-I softball for the Pride. It was during this time that she began umpiring softball games.^[3] In 2001, she participated in the Women's Baseball World Series as a member of the United States women's national baseball team.^[1]

Before going into professional umpiring, Pawol was an art teacher. She is a graduate of the Pratt Institute (B.F.A.) and Hunter College (M.F.A.). During this time, she continued to umpire part-time in amateur softball leagues.^[4]

Umpiring career

After umpiring softball games part-time for 11 years, Pawol decided to go into umpiring full-time. In 2016, she attended the Minor League Baseball Umpire Training Academy in Vero Beach, Florida. Her performance at the academy led to a spot in the MiLB Advanced Course which she completed in 2017. That same year, she began her professional baseball career in the Gulf Coast League.^[5]

During the 2023 season, she worked at the Triple-A level in both the International League and the Pacific Coast League, and was the home plate umpire during the Triple-A National Championship Game. She was the first female umpire to work at the Triple-A level in 34 years.^[6]

In 2024, Pawol became only the third woman to umpire in spring training, after Pam Postema and Ria Cortesio.^[7] She was the third base umpire during a game between the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals.^[8] She was a crew chief in Triple-A during the 2024 baseball season.^[9] In March, it was reported that Pawol was placed on Major League Baseball's call-up list for the 2024 season, meaning that she could be called up to the majors in the event a full-time Major League umpire is not available.^[10] She was selected to work spring training again in 2025, and will wear uniform number 95 as an MLB call-up.^[11]

See also

• Baseball portal

• Women in baseball