Jen Pawol makes baseball history as first woman to umpire an MLB game: ‘The dream actually came true today’

By Kevin Dotson, CNN

(CNN) — Baseball umpire Jen Pawol made history Saturday in Atlanta as she became the first woman to umpire a Major League Baseball regular season game.

Pawol worked at first base in Game 1 of the Atlanta Braves’ doubleheader against the Miami Marlins at Truist Park.

Making her big league debut in front of 35,664 fans, Pawol was grinning ear to ear as she took the field.

Pawol was welcomed warmly by members of the Marlins and Braves during the exchange of lineup cards.

Fans were also happy to witness history at the ballpark, with several holding signs with messages such as “Welcome to The Show, Jen” and “Thank you, Jen! From girls and women everywhere.”

“It was pretty amazing when we took the field, and it seemed like quite a few people started clapping and saying my name and stuff, so that was pretty intense and very emotional,” Pawol said after the game.

Once the game was underway, it was all business for the MLB rookie. She acquitted herself well at first base, accurately calling some close plays quickly and decisively.

“The dream actually came true today,” Pawol said in a postgame press conference after the 7-1 Braves’ victory. “And I’m still living in it.

“I’m just so grateful to my family, to Major League Baseball for just creating such an amazing work environment. To the umpires that I work with, we have just amazing camaraderie and we’re having fun out there. We’re working hard, but we’re having fun. And I’m just so thankful.”

After breaking the historic gender barrier, Pawol donated the hat she wore in the game to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.

“I always wanted to umpire,” Pawol told reporters. “I knew I had the bug, I had it in my DNA.”

“And then making it a career, when I realized ‘Wow, maybe I could be a Major Leaguer’ then I just went for it,” she added with a smile.

Pawol was the seventh woman to umpire in the minor leagues and made her pro debut in the Gulf Coast League in June 2016, according to MLB. She is one of 17 Triple-A umpires who are eligible to be called up to MLB games if needed.

“Any time anybody grinds their way through the minor leagues, I don’t care who it is, you hang around, that’s a tough job,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said after the first game of the doubleheader.

“Talking to umpires over my years, their travel and what they go through and everything, I’m happy for anybody that sticks it out and grinds through a career like that and gets the opportunity to be where they want to be, so good for her.”

Pawol’s historic weekend is far from over – she will work the second half of Saturday’s doubleheader at third base and will be calling the balls and strikes on Sunday as the home plate umpire in the series finale.

On Wednesday, MLB commissioner Robert D. Manfred, Jr. said Pawol’s call-up was an “historic accomplishment” and a “reflection of Jen’s hard work, dedication and love of the game.”

Manfred continued, “She has earned this opportunity, and we are proud of the strong example she has set, particularly for all the women and young girls who aspire to roles on the field. On behalf of Major League Baseball, I extend my congratulations to Jen and her family on this milestone.”

This story and its headline have been updated with additional reporting.

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