Wendelstedt Umpire School will host 50th and final class in 2026

After 50-years of training baseball umpires at all levels – including putting several dozen umpires into Major League Baseball, the Wendelstedt Umpire School will close after its 2026 graduating class.

Long history of umpire schools

Umpire schools began in the 1940s, when American League umpire, Bill McGowan started an umpire school with the goal to train professional umpires. Al Sommers purchased the school from the McGowan estate after the umpire’s death. National League umpire, Harry Wendelstedt purchased the umpire school from Sommers in 1977. This school, and other umpire schools, trained umpires from all walks of life. These umpire schools supplied minor league umpires for the upcoming season – and those graduates began their long march to the major leagues. If one wanted to be a big league umpire, they had to go through umpire school.

Harry Wendelstedt was a National League umpire from 1966 – 1998. His son, Hunter, was hired by the National League in 1998. After retirement, Harry Wendelstedt continued to run his umpire school. He passed away in 2012, and his son, Hunter took over running the school.

Over the years, major league umpires Bill Kinnamon, Jim Evans, Joe Brinkman and Bruce Froemming ran schools along with Wendelstedt. Even if a student didn’t want (or wasn’t chosen) to go into professional baseball, many of those students returned to their homes and became major college baseball umpires, or were content to be the best little league umpire in their town.

As the 21st century began, both the National and American League umpires combined staffs and Major League Baseball began its own school and evaluation program causing many umpire schools to close.

We want to stress that the Wendelstedt Umpire School has not given a reason why 2026 will be the last class.

No dedicated football, basketball or hockey schools

Other sports hold clinics (at the most a week-long clinic) where aspiring basketball, football and hockey officials pay to attend. The clinics include classroom instruction. Others include field work where officials work scrimmages. Many officiating scouts attend these clinics, looking to add to their staffs. But none of those clinics are as long or as intense as umpire schools.

When the Wendelstedt Umpire School graduates its final class, there will be no pro umpire schools, and aspiring minor league umpires have to go through the Major League Baseball evaluation process.

We congratulate the Wendelstedt Umpire School on its long run of putting dozens (if not hundreds) of umpires into major league and major college baseball. We wish students well when class begins in January 2026.