The Major League Baseball Umpire Camps will assist umpires in furthering the advancement of their college, high school and little league umpiring careers and will also serve as a preparatory course to those considering a career as a Major or Minor League umpire. The Camps will provide world-class umpire training with opportunities for attendees to earn scholarships to one of the two professional umpiring schools. The MLB Umpire Camps are an initiative of Major League Baseball's first Urban Youth Academy, which opened in February in Compton, Calif.
The MLB Umpire Camp will launch with two one-week sessions this November (Nov. 5-12 and Nov. 12-19). Each session will feature classroom instruction and on-field training from MLB umpire supervisors and current Major League umpires. In addition to work behind the plate and in the field, the camp will focus on conditioning, nutrition, safety and equipment needs. Major League Baseball is working with Major League umpires and the World Umpires Association to provide attendees the best one-week umpire training course available. Major League Baseball is also consulting with the Professional Baseball Umpire Corporation, the Jim Evans Academy of Umpiring and the Harry Wendelstedt Umpire School.
"The Major League Baseball Umpire Camps will provide a glimpse of all facets of umpiring to anyone who loves the game, whether they consider it a career option or simply as a way to channel their passion for baseball," said Jimmie Lee Solomon, MLB's Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations. "A chief goal of Major League Baseball's Urban Youth Academy is to grow the game and demonstrate how baseball can be a positive, productive part of young people's lives, and the MLB Umpire Camps will set out to achieve this objective in this essential aspect of our game."
Prospective applicants can learn more about the Major League Baseball Umpire Camps and the enrollment process by visiting MLBUmpireCamps.com or MLBUC.com.