Perry Barber: The debutante umpire
From Amy Phillips Penn at New York Natives on October 10, 2013, on SABR member Perry Barber:
Perry Barber is a rock star of a New York woman.
She is one of a nearly invisible number of ladies who have literally had the balls to go for baseball umpire-hood.
The men in her league were not happy about it, and let her know.
Big time.
This was a first, but not a last for a beautiful New York girl, who had made her debut at the Plaza and Waldorf Astoria, then hosted parties in a twenty plus room Eastside apartment; the one which she and her twin had to all to their awesome twin-some selves.
Hoo hah!
They were the belles of the New York Ball, and could have easily remained so.
Perry can’t resist a good challenge, and the role of baseball umpire, was beyond a challenge.
“They treated me with hostility,” Perry says in reference to the male dominated baseball world she had traded for any number of permutations of a cushy life.
“I had always been treated well, so this was a new experience for me. It was a battle out there and they could sense my vulnerability.
Instead of letting it make me feel bad, I took it as a challenge. With experience comes confidence. After thirty-two years of being an umpire, there has been very little change in the attitude towards women umpires. It’s starting to give a little now,” says Perry.
Read the full article here: newyorknatives.com/vintage-gossip-perry-barber-the-debutante-baseball-umpire/
Originally published: October 17, 2013. Last Updated: October 17, 2013.