Twin bill a fitting, and historic, debut as ump joins twin brother at MLB level

ST. LOUIS -- Somewhere along the drive between Columbus, Ohio, and St. Louis -- it’s still kind of foggy to rookie umpire Tyler Jones, because he was battling heavy rains and the tears in his eyes -- he and his twin brother and fellow MLB umpire Austin Jones shared a special moment.

To try and make Saturday’s six-hour drive seemingly go by faster, Tyler tried calling as many people as he could who helped him along his journey to becoming an MLB umpire. One of his first calls, of course, was to his twin, who umpired a Texas Rangers game less than a year earlier for his own MLB debut.

"[Austin] actually texted me right before [Game 1] and said there’s nothing like your first … unless you make two games in the same day,” said Tyler Jones, who worked Games 1 and 2 of Sunday’s doubleheader between the Cardinals and Mets. “But it was really cool to call him [while driving to St. Louis]. We kind of had a moment with each other, just because of going to umpire school together and then watching him make his debut last season when I was able to go to Dallas. It was really special for us.”

When Tyler got his big league callup to Busch Stadium on Sunday, it allowed him and Austin to become the fourth set of brothers -- but the first set of twins -- to umpire games at the MLB level. They joined John and Mark Hirschbeck, Tim and William Welke and Emil and Edwin Jimenez as brothers to work at the MLB level. That the twins from Charleston, S.C., have been able to accomplish their big league dreams within a year of one another made the moment sweeter, Tyler said.

"I think it’s cool,” said Tyler, who worked first base in Game 1 and third base in Game 2, of becoming the first set of twins to umpire in MLB. “I know a couple of sets of twins from back home and they went their own paths after high school, whether it’s military or something like that. But for he and I to still share this same interest -- and to be able to do it together for 11 years and be each other’s support system -- it’s been great.

"No matter what, if I’m in any bind I can give him a call and we can hash it out. We can get really mad at each other and 30 minutes later it’s over.”

Tyler said he and Austin first started umpiring Little League games when they were still attending Fort Dorchester High School in North Charleston, and they both chose umpiring as their profession before entering umpire school. Austin made it to the big leagues 11 years later, and was behind the plate on July 25, 2024, when likely future Hall of Fame pitcher Max Scherzer recorded the 3,400th strikeout of his career. Tyler was in attendance that night to celebrate his twin’s milestone moment.

Tyler found out he was going to the big leagues on Saturday when he got a call from a supervisor. Being in Columbus, Ohio, where he was working a Triple-A game, meant that he had a six-hour drive to get to St. Louis for Sunday’s assignment.

"A lot of phone calls and after a while, I just cut the music off and reminisced over 12 years [as an umpire] and 11 years in the Minor Leagues. There were a lot of thoughts going on,” he said. “When I got the phone call [on Saturday], it was kind of a surreal feeling. Driving here, getting into St. Louis and then walking onto the field today, that’s when it hit me.

“I think I ran out with [veteran umpire] Chris [Segal], and I was like, ‘I don’t know where my feet are right now.’ I didn’t really feel my feet for like the first three innings and then you realize, it’s the same game.”

Jones also got a measure of validation late in Sunday’s Game 1 when his ruling that first baseman Pete Alonso’s foot came off the bag was upheld by a replay review.

"That’s always a good feeling,” Jones said of his call being upheld. “Your heart stops during [the replay review] and you never know [what might happen], but that was a good feeling.”