MLB begins new path for candidates to pursue professional umpiring

Major League Baseball today announced a new path for candidates to pursue professional umpiring careers through the MLB Umpire Prospect Development Camp, a four-week experience that will become the gateway into umpiring careers in Minor League Baseball. The new model backed by Major League Baseball will transform the training of potential umpires by providing quality and consistent training at no cost to participants, with the long-term goals of expanding and diversifying the pool of interested candidates. The system also will expedite the road to the Major Leagues for the most outstanding performers, aimed at making umpiring a more feasible career option.

Michael Hill, Major League Baseball’s Senior Vice President of On-Field Operations, said: “We are pleased to create an improved system for the development of umpires. This model will remove several significant barriers for prospective candidates and allow for umpiring to become a more desirable career option for those who are interested. This natural next step in the development space will help us find the next wave of talented and diverse umpires who reach the Major Leagues.”

MLB’s Umpire Prospect Development Camp will be held at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex in Vero Beach, Florida in January. Attendees of MLB’s Umpire Prospect Development Camp will flow from participation in MLB’s existing network of free one-day Umpire Camps held across the country. In 2022, free MLB Umpire Camps have been held in Denver; Indianapolis, Indiana; Jacksonville, Florida; and Richmond, Virginia. The next one-day Umpire Camp will be held on Saturday, August 27th in Brooklyn, New York at Maimonides Park, the home of the Brooklyn Cyclones.MLB Umpire Camps date back to 2006, when they began at the MLB Youth Academy in Compton, California.