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?

[MAUmpire]

1 hour ago, JonnyCat said:

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

I think the point could be made more clearly but these seem to be all guys who have fathers/brothers who broke in before they did. My guess is that @dumbdumb means that Pawol aside, there has always been a lot of lowercase-p politics involved in MLB jobs...

[GerryB]

17 hours ago, Marcus6 said:

Where is this list?

At the bottom of the wiki umpire entry:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umpire_(baseball)

• 70 John Bacon
• 41 Brock Ballou
• 65 Steven Jaschinski
• 61 James Jean
• 75 Edwin Jímenez
• 77 Austin Jones
• 39 Tyler Jones
• 56 Dexter Kelley
• 94 Jacob Metz
• 99 Felix Neon
• 30 Jonathan Parra
• 95 Jen Pawol
• 53 Derek Thomas
• 45 Willie Traynor

stevetheump seems out of service

[JonnyCat]

9 hours ago, MAUmpire said:

I think the point could be made more clearly but these seem to be all guys who have fathers/brothers who broke in before they did. My guess is that @dumbdumb means that Pawol aside, there has always been a lot of lowercase-p politics involved in MLB jobs...

I'm not denying any of that. I'm merely stating that Pawol will almost definitely be one of the 7 new hires next year.

What ever the reasoning is, or however people feel about why it will happen, is irrelevant to me. All I said that it's probably a good bet that she will be hired.

However people want to interpret that is out of my hands. I never injected politics, nor did I state why I think she will be hired. I speak for myself, and until I do, people should not make assumptions about my positions.

Not saying you made assumptions about me, I'm just generalizing and providing clarity.

[Marcus6]

18 minutes ago, JonnyCat said:

I'm not denying any of that. I'm merely stating that Pawol will almost definitely be one of the 7 new hires next year.

What ever the reasoning is, or however people feel about why it will happen, is irrelevant to me. All I said that it's probably a good bet that she will be hired.

However people want to interpret that is out of my hands. I never injected politics, nor did I state why I think she will be hired. I speak for myself, and until I do, people should not make assumptions about my positions.

Not saying you made assumptions about me, I'm just generalizing and providing clarity.

One of the interesting things is her age - she is 49 per Google. If she got hired full time she would be starting at 50. For all of us who follow this, we know that is unheard of. Some have retired in their early 50s (ie Jim Reynolds). It’s also hard to see them releasing Jen after they have “invested” so much in her story.

[JonnyCat]

14 minutes ago, Marcus6 said:

It’s also hard to see them releasing Jen after they have “invested” so much in her story.

I agree. They do have a lot invested in her, mostly from a PR standpoint, IMO. Almost a no win for MLB. I think that MLB may have painted themselves in a corner. If they release her, outrage will most assuredly erupt from the media. If they hire her and she doesn't develop/perform well, then that's some backlash MLB probably doesn't want either.

[mw94]

6 hours ago, JonnyCat said:

I agree. They do have a lot invested in her, mostly from a PR standpoint, IMO. Almost a no win for MLB. I think that MLB may have painted themselves in a corner. If they release her, outrage will most assuredly erupt from the media. If they hire her and she doesn't develop/perform well, then that's some backlash MLB probably doesn't want either.

If she makes it she gets promoted she will be by far the oldest rookie umpire in MLB.  I might be wrong but i think the oldest ever was Vic Voltaggio when made the AL staff at 36 years old 

Edited 1 hour ago by mw94
spelling

[dumbdumb]

1 hour ago, mw94 said:

If she makes it she gets promoted she will be by far the oldest rookie umpire in MLB.  I might be wrong but i think the oldest ever was Vic Voltaggio when made the AL staff at 36 years old 

how quickly we forget former Navy veteran Emmett Ashford at 51 years of age in his rookie debut, after starting in the Southwest International League in 1951, then to the Arizona Texas League and then to the AAA Pacific Coast League where he toiled for 12 years, working with Cece Carlucci as his crew chief for 922 games. in 1963 Ashford was named PCL umpire in Chief until his MLB debut in 1966 per wikipedia and per sporting news umpire cards. Worked in commissioners Kuhn's office upon retirement.

and dutch rennert was 43 which is a lot older than Voltaggio going full time. will look for others that beat Voltaggio in age. think one of the fill ins was 40 when they made it full time. could be Drake, but will have to check. Voltaggio did not have to ever work as a fill in. Believe Layne was the last to never have to work as a fill in (right to full time), other than some of the guys who might have come up full time in 99, maybe Fletcher and Marquez?? with no call up fill in service time.