2024
FIRST ALL-BLACK CREW TO UMPIRE RICKWOOD FIELD GAME
by Jason Foster @ByJasonFoster
Rickwood Field will see history in multiple ways when the Cardinals take on the Giants on Thursday night.
Along with being the first regular‑season AL/NL game to be played at America’s oldest ballpark as a tribute to the Negro Leagues, the game will also be the first in AL/NL history to feature an all‑Black umpiring crew, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
Adrian Johnson, 49, will serve as crew chief, while Alan Porter, 46, will be behind the plate, per the report. C.B. Bucknor, 61, Jeremie Rehak, 36, and Malachi Moore, 34, will also work the game. Additionally, MLB.com confirmed that the Rickwood event will feature a Black official scorer: Frank Johnson, who currently scores Astros games in Houston.
The five are the only Black umpires currently working in the league, and there have been just 11 full‑time Black umpires in the history of the American and National Leagues since Emmett Ashford became the first in 1966. The umpires for Thursday’s game will wear a patch to honor Ashford, Rosenthal reports.
“The fact that we have enough guys to form a whole crew and have a replay guy as well, that says a lot,” Johnson said, according to The Athletic. “It’s been a long time coming. And it makes me very happy.”
