Volunteer Umpires Announced for the 2022 Little League® World Series Events

2021 LLSWS Umpires

With the return of all seven Little League® World Series events in 2022, Little League International is excited to announce the more than 90 volunteer umpires who are set to take the field for these iconic events this July and August.

“The impact of not having the World Series events in their full capacities the last two years had a major effect on the players and coaches who were looking forward to playing on the biggest stage in youth sports, but also left a profound impact on the volunteer umpires who dream of working at our World Series events each year,” said Tom Rawlings, Little League Director of Umpire Development. “We are honored and excited to welcome these dedicated individuals back to the field this summer as they continue to work to provide the best possible experience for Little Leaguers from around the world. Their commitment and dedication as regular season and tournament umpires over the years has not gone unnoticed and we are proud to recognize their efforts with this honor.”

The selection process to become a World Series umpire is lengthy and rigorous. In order to be eligible to volunteer in a Little League World Series event, an umpire must first have competed in a region tournament event. After that experience is completed, the process for selection to work a World Series begins with an application submitted by each volunteer umpire through the Umpire Registry. Once received, the District Administrator may also provide comments to the region office for review. Little League’s nine region offices then consider all nominated umpires before selecting those who most closely meet the selection criteria. Individuals who meet those qualifications are then screened annually by Little League International and region staffs for selection to umpire in a Little League World Series tournament.

Appointment as a member of the umpiring crew for a World Series is the highest honor that Little League can bestow on a volunteer umpire. The umpires that have been selected below are based on nominations received since the 2019 season, with those who opted to defer their selection from the 2020/2021 World Series now having the opportunity to volunteer their services for the 2022 events. Little League International will support all volunteer umpires at the seven World Series events with a travel stipend to help offset the costs for the men and women to attend their respective World Series events.

Below is the listing of volunteer umpires who will take the field for each of the seven Little League Baseball and Softball World Series events this summer, along with the region and city/state/country that they represent:

Little League Baseball® World Series (Williamsport, Pa.)

  • Wayne Beaumier (Southwest Region – Cypress, Texas)
  • Kenton Bottoms (Central Region – Lawrenceburg, Ky.)
  • David Brown (Canada Region – Calgary, Alberta)
  • Andrea Galiano (Southeast Region – Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
  • Henry Garnett (West Region – Ramona, Calif.)
  • Mark Gilmour (Asia-Pacific Region – NSW, Australia)
  • James Hinojosa (Central Region – Romulus, Mich.)
  • Philip Levesque (East Region – Nashua, N.H.)
  • Rigobert Obispo (Latin America Region – Willemstad, Curaçao)
  • Mike Orlando (East Region – Peabody, Mass.)
  • Richard Ranalli Sr. (East Region – Jersey City, N.J.)
  • Scott Strache (Central Region – Chicago Ridge, Ill.)
  • Blake Taylor (Europe and Africa Region – Nuneaton, U.K.)
  • William Vikara (Southeast Region – Pace, Fla.)
  • Brett Wagner (Southwest Region – Odessa, Texas)
  • Dennis Williams (West Region – SeaTac, Wash.)

Intermediate (50/70) Baseball World Series (Livermore, Calif.)

  • Terrance Bean (East Region – Clarion, Pa.)
  • Sean Belfry (East Region – Gansevoort, N.Y.)
  • Jim Catania (Canada Region – North Vancouver, B.C.)
  • John Cleary (West Region – Moorpark, Calif.)
  • Mark Dieringer (Southwest Region – Port Lavaca, Texas)
  • Seddrick Dixon (Southeast Region – Fort Pierce, Fla.)
  • Chris Ekstrom (Central Region – Davenport, Iowa)
  • Filip Havlik (Europe and Africa Region – Prague, Czech Republic)
  • Josh Koenig (Central Region – International Falls, Minn.)
  • Todd Marr (Southwest Region – Arlington, Texas)
  • Rafael Marrero-Ruiz (Latin America Region – Mayaguiz, P.R.)
  • Ucal Palmer Jr. (Southeast Region – Austell, Ga.)
  • Mike Ragan (West Region – Danville, Calif.)

Junior League Baseball World Series (Taylor, Mich.)

  • Carl Anable (Southwest Region – Westworth Village, Texas)
  • Felton Brown (Southwest Region – Houston, Texas)
  • Toby Colon (East Region – Havertown, Pa.)
  • Sal Gambino (West Region – Fallbrook, Calif.)
  • Derek Gillespie (West Region – Sparks, Nev.)*
  • Mike Goicoechea (Southeast Region – Tampa, Fla.)
  • Patrick Griffin (Central Region – Galesburg, Mich.)
  • Rob Macdonald (Canada Region – London, Ontario)
  • Jules Martina (Europe and Africa Region – The Hague, Holland)
  • Ian Osgood (West Region – Meridian, Idaho)
  • Michael Phinazee (Southeast Region – Tallahassee, Fla.)
  • Gaspar Santos-Gonzalez (Latin America Region – Cidra, P.R.)
  • Owen Sprague (East Region – Standish, Maine)

Senior League Baseball World Series (Easley, S.C.)

  • Thomas Bourque (East Region – Waltham, Mass.)
  • Duane Cave (West Region – Aliso Viejo, Calif.)
  • Robert Curtis II (East Region – Bangor, Maine)
  • Hector Figueroa-Rodriguez (Latin America Region – San Juan, P.R.)
  • David Frye (Southeast Region – Fort Pierce, Fla.)
  • Brian Hollowell (Central Region – Goshen, Ind.)
  • Philip King (Central Region – Lancaster, Ohio)
  • Rodger Moss (Southwest Region – Brazoria, Texas)
  • Timothy Neasham (West Region – Richland, Wash.)
  • Payton Oltmann (Southwest Region – Giddings, Texas)
  • Mark Onushco (East Region – Tamaqua, Pa.)
  • Marc Reyes (Canada Region – Maple Ridge, B.C.)
  • Guy Vilt (Southeast Region – Bradenton, Fla.)

Little League Softball® World Series (Greenville, N.C.)

  • John Cheesbrew (Southeast Region – Fredericksburg, Va.)
  • Douglas Durling (Southeast Region – Davenport, Fla.)
  • Walter Gross (Southwest Region – Rio Rancho, N.M.)
  • Greg Hodges (Southwest Region – Needville, Texas)
  • David Mancari (East Region – Poughkeepsie, N.Y.)
  • Jose Muriente-Ruiz (Latin America Region – Camuy, P.R.)
  • Mark Oda (West Region – Pinole, Calif.)
  • Chester Rice (Central Region – West Des Moines, Iowa)
  • John Rucinski (Central Region – Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich.)
  • Carlos Santana-Quiles (Latin America Region – Las Piedras, P.R.)
  • Jamie Sims (West Region – Beaverton, Ore.)
  • Joseph Ungrady (East Region – Oxford, Conn.)

Junior League Softball World Series (Kirkland, Wash.)

  • Rex Fogle (Central Region – Menomonee Falls, Wis.)*
  • Michael Foltz (Southeast Region – Luray, Va.)
  • Juan Galarza-Figueroa (Latin America Region – Villalba, P.R.)
  • Scott Goodwin (West Region – Phoenix, Ariz.)
  • David Jones (Canada Region – Red Cliff, Alberta)
  • Jeffrey Lindhorst (Southwest Region – Ingleside, Texas)
  • Sigfredo Martinez (Southwest Region – Brownsville, Texas)
  • Ross Pease (East Region – Vernon, Conn.)
  • Milton Pitt (East Region – Forest Heights, Md.)
  • Jeffery Pratt (West Region – San Jose, Calif.)
  • Richard Randall (Central Region – Youngstown, Ohio)
  • Ian Tyra (Southeast Region – Sterling, Va.)

Senior League Softball World Series (Lower Sussex, Del.)

  • Robert Cain II (Central Region – Taylor, Mich.)
  • Paul Eaton (West Region – Redmond, Ore.)
  • Stephen Gaither (Southeast Region – King George, Va.)
  • Adrian Gaudet (Canada Region – Calgary, Alberta)
  • John Hill (East Region – Portland, Maine)
  • Kyle Hughes (Southwest Region – Ballinger, Texas)
  • Keith Ludwig (East Region – Trappe, Md.)
  • Rumini Modesto Thode (Latin America Region – Willemstad, Curaçao)
  • Thomas Peckham (West Region – Seattle, Wash.)
  • Vincente Piscitello (Southeast Region – Seminole, Fla.)
  • Mark Saurer (Central Region – Louisville, Ky.)
  • Ronald Thompson (Southwest Region – Rio Rancho, N.M.)

In addition to the World Series umpire listings above, U.S. Region Tournament umpire assignments can be found by visiting the respective Region pages on LittleLeague.org closer to the start of the event.

Volunteer umpires are one of the most important aspects in the success of local Little League programs around the world and play a pivotal role in the experience of all our players throughout the Little League International Tournament. As a way to continually develop these volunteer umpires throughout the year, Little League International offers a variety of digital training and educational resources available on LittleLeague.org/Umpires, a bi-monthly Fair Ball Newsletter, access to the free Little League Umpire Registry, and formal training through Umpire Clinics and Schools around the nation.

Additionally, the umpires for the 2022 Little League Baseball World Series will participate in a multi-day orientation at the Little League International Complex from May 10-15, 2022.

For more information about the 2022 LLBWS, as well as the six other World Series events and their respective Region Tournaments, be sure to visit LittleLeague.org/WorldSeries.

*Please note that Rex Fogle (Mount Dora, Fla.) and Derek Gillespie (Bradenton, Fla.) will be representing the local league and community they were originally nominated for in the listing above, though currently live in a different state/region as designated in this note.