Futures Game Umpire

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Originally Posted by SanDiegoSteve

Can somebody fill me in on why Ria Cortesio did not get promoted to AAA this season? She is now in her 4th year of AA, and that is normally one year longer than you get before being released. Are they giving her one more year to showcase her talent before making a decision? I have been rooting for her to be the first female MLB umpire, but she needs to get to AAA soon.

Steve,

Simple: Promotions are driven by ranking. All MiLB umpires are ranked twice perseason (Once this year). From that ranking come promotions as spots open up.

It's not uncommon for higher ranked AA umpires to be retained when few spots have opened at AAA, as MLB doesn't want to lose the opportunity to 'look at' these umpires.

I have no details regarding actual rankings, though it would not surprise me at all to have one or two AA umpires pulled up to AAA by the end of the year.