On June 24, , Bernice Gera became the first woman to umpire in a professional baseball game when she called a game between the Auburn Phillies and Geneva Senators. It ended up being the only pro game she ever umpired. It was clear in that meeting before the game that she would have no cooperation from the other umpires. She anticipated that they would not involve her in the teamwork that umpiring required. Her prediction came true. A call she made was reversed during the game, and the manager of the Phillies challenged another decision which led her to throw him out of the game.
Gera had a long road to that single game in the New York-Penn League. In , at the age of 36, the secretary enrolled in the Florida Baseball School after umpiring Little League games in the early s.
The school was male-dominated and she spent the six weeks of the umpire program living in a motel because there were no facilities for female students. After completing her training, the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues NAPBL rejected her application, stating that she did not meet the physical requirements for the position of umpire. After completing her training and fighting for several years in court, Bernice Gera pictured above won the right to umpire a professional game in National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
After several years in court, she won the right to umpire in Despite quitting her role after the single game, Gera continued participating in the world of baseball.
She worked for the New York Mets doing community relations and promotions until her retirement. It was for sheer love of the sport. The shoes Gera wore during her historic game in are preserved at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Bernice Gera wore these shoes on June 24, , when she became the first woman to umpire a game in professional baseball.
