7 to get buyout - per usa today bob nightengale

[dumbdumb]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2026/07/05/cb-bucknor-laz-diaz-retire-mlb-umpires-buyout-2026-season/90814368007/ 

in more recent times the fewest amount of call up games before being hired full time was Dan Bellino, who had 1 game in 2008, 31 games in 2009, and 112 games in 2010, or 144 call up games before a 2011 full time hire.

[Marcus6]

This will be interesting - would have to think Brock Ballew, Derek Thomas are in line. Also seems like Willie Traynor is a fast track and would crack this new hire group. Bacon has been up and down for a while but hasn’t been as up this year as he was last year. I felt like the hirings of guys like Mackay, Clemons, and Walsh lately were “out of left field” so who knows? Feel like James Jean and Dexter Kelley haven’t been up in a while. Also don’t think they can pass up Pawol with how much they have invested in her.

[GerryB]

I see there are about 14 call ups on the wiki list (with numbers < 100). Are there more, and do any have numbers >= 100?

Obviously number is not a predictor, but I find it hard to think that MLB would assign a low number then release them. Ballou, Thomas and Traynor have low numbers.

[wolfe_man]

Just please only promote those worthy of true MLB umpire material.  It should be based scores and game-keeping ability, not anything else.   I don't want to bring politics in here, but let it be merit-based... please.

[JonnyCat]

5 hours ago, wolfe_man said:

Just please only promote those worthy of true MLB umpire material.  It should be based scores and game-keeping ability, not anything else.   I don't want to bring politics in here, but let it be merit-based... please.

If I was a betting man, I would bet the farm that Pawol will be one of the 7 hired.

[dumbdumb]

55 minutes ago, JonnyCat said:

If I was a betting man, I would bet the farm that Pawol will be one of the 7 hired.

and if the exact same situation of 7 openings had happened in the past, i would think a lot of people would bet the farm that Gerry Crawford would be one of the seven hired, Brian Gorman would be one of the seven hired, Paul Runge would be one of the 7 hired, Brian Runge would be one of the 7 hired, Hunter Wendelstedt, Jr. would be one of the 7 hired, Mark Hirschbeck would be one of the 7 hired, and Bill Welke would be one of the 7 hired.

[Marcus6]

9 hours ago, GerryB said:

I see there are about 14 call ups on the wiki list (with numbers < 100). Are there more, and do any have numbers >= 100?

Obviously number is not a predictor, but I find it hard to think that MLB would assign a low number then release them. Ballou, Thomas and Traynor have low numbers.

Where is this list?

[JonnyCat]

13 hours ago, dumbdumb said:

and if the exact same situation of 7 openings had happened in the past, i would think a lot of people would bet the farm that Gerry Crawford would be one of the seven hired, Brian Gorman would be one of the seven hired, Paul Runge would be one of the 7 hired, Brian Runge would be one of the 7 hired, Hunter Wendelstedt, Jr. would be one of the 7 hired, Mark Hirschbeck would be one of the 7 hired, and Bill Welke would be one of the 7 hired.

I don't understand what you're talking about here. Could you eleborate?