Edwin Jiménez (umpire)

Edwin Jiménez Pernalete

• Born 1993 in Santa Ana de Coro, Falcón Venezuela

Biographical Information

Edwin Jiménez became a major league umpire when he umpired his first games during the 2023 season. He worked 79 games his first season. He had previously worked in the minor leagues. On July 16, 2023, he had his first career ejection, giving the thumb to Cincinnati Reds manager for arguing balls and strikes in a game against the Milwaukee Brewers; it would have been a footnote except that Bell, who was obviously frustrated over his team's performance, put on a big performance, including throwing dirt on the plate and tracing an imaginary strike zone over it, before going away.

His brother, Emil Jimenez, also made his umpiring debut that season; the two are part of a family of five siblings, all of whom have a first name starting with the letter E. Their father, Emilio, was an amateur baseball player and a baseball official in the state of Falcón. The similarity in their names has created some confusion: for example, Getty Images circulated a picture of Emil ejecting Chicago Cubs manager David Ross on May 13, 2023, but mistakenly identified Edwin as the official involved. It was published in various places with the wrong attribution.

He attended umpiring school in Venezuela and worked two seasons in the Dominican Summer League before being selected by Venezuelan baseball authorities to continue his training in the United States, a prize for being the highest-ranked umpire in the Venezuelan umpires camp in 2018. Like his brother, he was mentored by umpires Manny Hernandez and Carlos Torres, who had preceded him to the big leagues. He was the sixth Venezuelan to become an umpire in the majors, preceding his brother by a matter of days.

Further Reading

• Juan Carlos Villamizar (Prensa VUC): "Edwin Jiménez cumple su sueño", Venezuelaumpirecamp.org, July 1, 2018. [1]

Related Sites

• Edwin Jimenez on Retrosheet.org