| Bill Welke | |
|---|---|
 Welke in 2011 | |
| Born:August 22, 1967 Coldwater, Michigan | |
| MLB debut | |
| June 4, 1999 | |
| Last appearance | |
| August 21, 2022 | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Special Assignments |
William Anthony Welke (born August 22,1967) is an American retired Major League Baseball umpire. He joined the major league staff in 1999 and worked the World Series in 2015. Welke was promoted to crew chief for the 2022 season,and retired following that season. [1]
Welke is the brother of fellow umpire Tim Welke,and is an alumnus of Western Michigan University. [2] He graduated from Western Michigan University in 1990 with a bachelor's degree in business administration. [3]
Welke previously worked in the Appalachian League (1991),the Midwest League (1992),the Florida State League (1993–1994),the Southern League (1995),the Eastern League (1996),and the International League (1997–1998). [2]
He was an American League umpire in his MLB rookie season in 1999,one year prior to the certification of the World Umpires Association which unified the crews of both major leagues. [4] He has worked the Division Series in 2003,2006,2011,2015 and 2020. He also worked the League Championship Series in 2014,2016,2017 and 2019 as well as the 2015 World Series. He was a part of the crew that worked in the 2003 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. [5] Bill was named a Crew Chief for the 2022 MLB season.
In baseball, the umpire is the person charged with officiating the game, including beginning and ending the game, enforcing the rules of the game and the grounds, making judgment calls on plays, and handling the disciplinary actions. The term is often shortened to the colloquial form ump. They are also sometimes addressed as blue at lower levels due to the common color of the uniform worn by umpires. In professional baseball, the term blue is seldom used by players or managers, who instead call the umpire by name. Although games were often officiated by a sole umpire in the formative years of the sport, since the turn of the 20th century, officiating has been commonly divided among several umpires, who form the umpiring crew. The position is analogous to that of a referee in many other sports.
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