Zen Powell’s willingness to get better tomorrow, the MLB referee barrier
The first female referee appears in the major league (MLB) regular league.
According to AP and others, Zen Powell (48) was assigned to the 2025 Major League Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins Games Home Plate on November 11 at the Atlanta Truist Park. As the double header schedule was organized the day before, one more referee was needed, and Powell, who was registered as a major league replacement, was called. Powell will be Lu -sim in one of the two games on the 10th.
Currently, there are 76 full -time referees in the major leagues, and alternative referees are introduced in the spaces of injuries or vacations. Powell is one of the 17 triple A referees who are eligible for major leagues. Powell became the first woman in the major league regular league match. Rob Man Pread Major League Commissioner said in an interview with foreign media on the 7th, “This historical achievement is the result of Powell’s efforts, devotion, and baseball love.” Powell deserves this opportunity.
Powell, who was also a softball catcher at the University of Hopestra, began his professional referee in the 2016 Rookie League and was the seventh female referee in the minor league history. Since then, he has been a triple A referee in 2023 and has been in charge of the Triple A Championship in September of the same year. In 2024, he was the first major league spring camp game since 2007 since 2007. That year, he became a chief crew of Triple A referee.
In 2025, the Spring Camp has also been referred to as a referee. The Major League Judges Association (MLBUA) said in a statement that “we sincerely congratulate Powell’s historical major league debut.” “Powell’s achievement proves his skills, devotion, and persistence. We proudly regards this barrier and expect more women to enter the path of referee in the future.”
Professional sports -based women’s referees have been active in various sports in recent years. In the US professional basketball (NBA), Violet Farmer debuted as the first female referee in the opening match between Dallas and Vancouver on October 31, 1997, while Serah Thomas played as a line jersey in the US professional football (NFL) on September 13, 2015. During the 2022 Catar World Cup, France Stephanie Frapart was named as the first female referee in the Men’s World Cup history as a group league in Germany and Costa Rica. In the English Premier League (EPL), Rebecca Walsh was in charge of Burnley and Fulham on December 23, 2023.
Powell said in an interview with the media in 2024. “Everyone in the baseball world will say. ‘Just think simple, work hard, pour everything, prepare the next day.’ I think so every day. ‘Let’s get better tomorrow.”
‘Let’s get better tomorrow’ became the ground Pocheongcheon, and finally, it is Powell, which has finally go beyond the high barrier of ‘Major League’.
By Kim Yang -hee, reporter whizzer4@hani.co.kr
