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It’s time to start thinking about the All-Star rosters, we have history waiting in the wings, and if you’re gonna be a buyer — or a seller — you gotta get it right. I’m Levi Weaver, here with Ken Rosenthal — welcome to The Windup!
She plays a tune for those who wish to overlook
I’m just old enough to remember the cover of Sports Illustrated from March 14, 1988. An umpire is shown pointing and yelling, and while the face is obscured by a mask, the headline caught my attention:
THE LADY IS AN UMP: Pam Postema gets a shot at the big leagues
That was 35 years ago, but no woman — not Postema or anyone else — has ever worked a regular-season game in the big leagues, despite women working as officials in the NBA and NFL (including Sarah Thomas, who became the first woman to work a Super Bowl in 2021).
That might change in the coming years. Britt Ghiroli has a great story today about Jen Pawol, who is currently working games in Triple A. It’s a story about a trailblazer, sure, but Ghiroli digs into the history of female umpires, including Postema, who settled out of court on a lawsuit alleging discrimination, and Teresa Cox, whose lawsuit…
