Exclusive: Negro League Tribute At Rickwood Field Features First All-Black Umpire Crew

Exclusive: Negro League Tribute At Rickwood Field Features First All-Black Umpire Crew

When the St. Louis Cardinals meet the San Francisco Giants on June 20th at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama it will be the first time ever that we have a crew made up entirely of Black umpires.

The mood will be solemn as the great Willie Mays, who played at Rickwood Field as a 19-year-old Negro League player on the Birmingham  Black Barons and was expected to be present for the event, passed away on June 18th.

 

Mays would have been proud to see an all-melanated umpire crew. It’s amazing that in 2024, this is the first time we are seeing such representation between the lines.

“We approached the umpires in January and they were all enthusiastic about participating,” an MLB official who works with the umpiring department told MLBbro.com on Tuesday. 

First All-Black Umpire Crew At Rickwood Field 

  • Crew Chief Adrian Johnson
  • Alan Porter
  • CB Bucknor
  • Jeremie Rehak
  • Malachi Moore


One of the five above will be the Replay Official on-site.

They also will be wearing a patch in memory of Emmett Ashford, the first African American umpire in the AL or NL.