Baseball – after 156 years! First referee in baseball profile

More than 1200 games. One would think that is enough for experience. It is unusual that not even the Major League Baseball (MLB), the sports league that probably raises the most sensible and senseless statistics seems to know exactly how many games Jen Pawol has supervised in the under -class leagues over the past ten years before it is used for the first time in the MLB for the first time – as the first referee in general.

With this, Pawol breaks another barrier for women in US sports. Pam Postema was allowed to lead preparation games in 1988, but after that she was never used in the main round. After all: Postema became a mentor for Pawol, who can now realize her both dreams when the home team of the Braves in Atlanta will compete against Miami Marlins three times on two days. Since two games are pending in one day, another impartial of the usually four -member referee team needed, and an impartial was found in Pawol. There are still eight referees in the countless lower professionals in the US baseball, at least for them Pawol is now a symbol of hope.

“It was a long, hard way. But I love the camaraderie with my team with my colleagues, ”Pawol is quoted on mlb.com. “Being a referee is my thing. It is in my blood. I just concentrate extremely on making my decisions correctly. ”And that will be necessary to prove yourself, because the referees are the focus of hardly any other sport. At every litter you should decide whether the ball – which the gender of the referee is pretty irrelevant – flew just through the rather small strike zone or over it. Your decisions can decide games, which is why they are often insulted by players and coaches. To make matters worse, the boundaries of the strike zone, which are invisible in reality, are displayed in a way for all TV viewers. Errors of the referees are immediately visible to everyone.

“I am convinced that I will be a very good representative for young girls and women, boys and men.”

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After all, Pawol recently reported mostly positive reactions to her work. Adam Wainwright, long-time pitcher of the St. Louis Cardinals, met the referee in a rehabilitation mission. Pawaol said afterwards: “It was my first year in the 2nd league, and he immediately said: ‘Jen, I have daughters and I find it totally cool what you do. I keep my fingers crossed for you.<"

It seems to have helped. Because in addition to hard work, some luck is also part of the promotion to the MLB. With only 76 MLB referees, vacancies are rare at the highest level. In order to get a full -time position, most of them have to wait for someone to retire. Pawol therefore described her previous career as a “ten -year application process”.

It is now part of a slowly growing group of referees at the highest level in US men’s sports. Basketball games in the NBA have also been whistled by a few referees since 1997. In the NFL it even took 92 years after the foundation, until 2012 a woman was allowed to throw the famous yellow flags for the first time.

The roots of the professional baseball and thus the MLB even go back to 1869. So it took 156 years here for a woman about Balls and Strikes, Steals and Homeruns for the first time this weekend. And that’s no coincidence. Until a few years ago, American football took over the space at the top of the list of most popular sports in the USA, baseball was considered a national sport for more than a century, as a favorite time die, as “America’s pastime”. Such sports are usually most commonly connected to masculinity, so that they also defend themselves the longest against the move in of women and equality. In the Federal Republic, football was even banned for women for decades. A first World Cup referee in men did not exist until 2022. In her 108-year history, NHL has not seen a referee, also because ice hockey in Canada is the male connoted national sport.

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Baseball was also unsuitable for women. A first professional league was only introduced in the 1940s, and even when most men fought on the fronts of the Second World War. In the 50s, the female leagues, who even operated as “Girl’s Leagues”, were quickly history again. Instead, it would be better to invent and with softball a variant intended for women with larger balls and smaller fields to keep them away from the actual baseball. This tendency continues to this day: just a few months after the foundation of a new women’s professional baseball league, the MLB preferred to decide in May to promote a previously known professional soft ball division.

Pawol’s appearance in Atlanta will now be all the more remarkable. “I am aware of the scope,” said the 48-year-old from New Jersey, who had played softball at a college level in her past. Around 30 friends and family members are expected to play on Saturday. However, millions may watch. “I am convinced that I will be a very good administrator and representative for young girls and women, boys and men. Because I will show: this is possible. “