Junior Valentine

Junior Taylor Valentine

• Height 5' 11", Weight 184 lb.
• School Maryville College

• Born October 21, 1987 in Cosby, TN USA

Biographical Information

Junior Valentine made his debut as a major league umpire on August 26, 2020 then went on to work some 22 games that first season. All of these games were in the two eastern divisions. On September 13, 2021, while working first base in a game between the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals, he was hit square in the head by an errant throw by Cards SS Edmundo Sosa. While getting hit by the ball is part of the normal occupational hazards while working home plate, such instances are much rarer on the bases. He went down upon impact and was bleeding, but was able to continue after being attended to by trainers.

He graduated from the Wendelstedt Umpire School in 2011 coming out of college and later became the chief classroom instructor there. He worked in the Appalachian League, the Florida Instructional League, the Arizona Instructional League, the Carolina League, the Eastern League and the Pacific Coast League. He also worked in the Arizona Fall League, and was part of the crew for the 2015 Futures Game in Cincinnati, OH and the 2019 AAA All-Star Game.

He became a permanent member of the major league umpiring crew in 2023.

He played baseball in college at Maryville College before turning to umpiring. He is still a resident of Maryville, TN.

Related Sites

• Junior Valentine on Retrosheet.org