Mike DiMuro

Michael Ryan DiMuro

• Height 6' 1", Weight 190 lb.
• School University of San Diego

• Born October 12, 1967 in Dunkirk, NY USA

Biographical Information

Mike DiMuro was a major league umpire and the son of major league umpire Lou DiMuro. His twin brother Ray DiMuro was a fill-in umpire in the majors as well.

Mike DiMuro began his career in the Arizona League in 1991, a year out of college. He moved up to the California League (1992), Texas League (1993-1994), American Association (1995) and Pacific Coast League (1996). In 1997, he was hired by the Central League as the first American to umpire in Nippon Pro Baseball.

DiMuro was not informed by Japanese officials of the higher strike zone in Japan or the level of violence against umpires in the country. Early in the season, he ran into conflict with Taiwanese slugger Yasuaki Taiho of the Chunichi Dragons over a called strike. Taiho hit DiMuro in the chest and almost knocked him down. Leo Gomez, Taiho's teammate, came to DiMuro's rescue. When Taiho only got a letter of reprimand in response, DiMuro was ordered by the American League to return to the USA because of safety concerns.

Mike worked in the PCL for the remainder of 1997, although he did work his first few major league games in the AL that summer. He remained in the PCL in 1998 but came to the majors to stay in 1999, helped by the Richie Phillips-led mass resignation of MLB umpires. DiMuro wore number 16, just as his father had. He worked the 2005 All-Star Game, as well as Division Series in 2000 and 2010.

DiMuro was involved in an embarrassing play in a game between the Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees at New Yankee Stadium on June 26, 2012. With two outs in the 7th inning, the Indians' Jack Hannahan hit a pop-up towards the left field stands; Yankees LF Dewayne Wise dove into the crowd, and then came up pretending he had made the catch, running back towards his dugout and high-fiving teammate Derek Jeter along the way. DiMuro never asked to see the ball, as proper protocol dictates, and indeed, it was still in the stands, as Wise had never made the catch. However, the call was left to stand, much to Hannahan's dismay, and DiMuro ejected him when he went back to take his position and argued with the umpire after seeing a replay in the clubhouse. After the game, DiMuro admitted his mistake: "I went out on the ball and saw the ball into [Wise's] glove in the stands. He disappeared into the stands, and I believed that the ball was in his glove. In hindsight, I should have asked him to show me the ball, since he fell into the stands and out of my line of vision."

DiMuro retired during the 2019 season, having worked his last game on July 8th. He was bothered by back problems and decided to call it a career after 21 seasons.

Sources

• The Meaning of Ichiro by Robert Whiting, pg. 170-173
• 2010 MLB Umpire Media Guide

Related Sites

• Mike DiMuro on Retrosheet,org