Michael Ryan DiMuro (born October 12, 1967) is a former

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

. In 1997, DiMuro briefly became the first American umpire to work in

Japanese baseball Baseball was introduced to Japan in 1872 and is Japan's most popular participatory and spectator sport. The first professional competitions emerged in the 1920s. The highest level of baseball in Japan is Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), which ...

. On May 29, 2010, DiMuro was the home plate umpire for

Roy Halladay Harry Leroy "Roy" Halladay III (May 14, 1977 – November 7, 2017) was an American professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies between 1998 and 2013. His nicknam ...

perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...

, the 20th perfect game recorded in MLB history.

Japanese baseball

In 1997, DiMuro umpired in the Japanese

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consi ...

in an experiment designed to introduce American umpiring standards to Nippon Professional Baseball. However, DiMuro was stunned by the casual acceptance of abuse toward umpires; after he ejected

Chunichi Dragons The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chūbu region of Japan. The team plays in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. They have won the Central League pennant nine times (most recently in 2011) ...

hitter Yasuaki Taiho from a game for arguing balls and strikes, players and the team's

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

swarmed him in protest and Taiho shoved him in the chest. Other than the ejection, there were no penalties assessed to Taiho, and after consulting with officials of both the Central League and the American League, DiMuro resigned and returned to the United States.

Personal life

DiMuro currently resides in

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

. Upon graduation from Salpointe Catholic High School, he earned a BA in Communications from the University of San Diego in 1990. He is an FAA licensed commercial pilot. DiMuro co-founded an organization called "Blue For Kids" with fellow umpire

Marvin Hudson Marvin Lee Hudson (born March 3, 1964) is an American Major League Baseball (MLB) umpire who began his career in the National League in . He has officiated in the 2004 All-Star Game, eight Division Series ( 2005, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016 ...

in 2004. The organization is now called UMPS CARE Charities and is the official charity for Major League Umpires. Mike's father Lou was an

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

umpire from 1963 until 1982, when he died of injuries sustained from being hit by a car. His father also wore number 16 during his major league career. Mike's twin brother Ray also worked occasional games as a substitute umpire in the AL from 1996 to 1999. DiMuro retired on July 18, 2019, after a 20-year career.

References

External links

Major league profileUMPS CARE Charities
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dimuro, Mike 1967 births Living people American expatriate baseball people in Japan Commercial aviators Major League Baseball umpires People from Dunkirk, New York American twins Twin sportspeople University of San Diego alumni

Japanese baseball

Personal life

See also

References

External links