Home plate umpire Jen Pawol became the focal point of contention on Sunday as both the San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays expressed dissatisfaction with her calls during a 5-4 Padres victory. The incidents occurred in the bottom of the second inning.
The sequence began when Padres second baseman Sung-Mun Song attempted to challenge a called strike from pitcher Kevin Gausman. Pawol ruled that Song's helmet tap, intended to signal a challenge, was too late, despite Song appearing to react immediately after the pitch was called. San Diego hitting coach Steven Souza Jr. was ejected from the game by Pawol after protesting the ruling.
Later in the same inning, with the bases loaded for San Diego, the Blue Jays voiced their own grievances. During Jackson Merrill's at-bat, the Blue Jays believed Gausman committed a balk. The umpires convened to discuss the play after Pawol had initially ruled the pitch a strike. Blue Jays manager John Schneider emerged from the dugout to join his pitcher in expressing frustration with the ongoing discussion.
Ultimately, the umpires overturned the strike call and ruled it a balk. This decision allowed Ty France to score from third, extending the Padres' lead to 3-1 and advancing other runners.
The Blue Jays managed to take a brief lead in the fourth inning when Ernie Clement hit a home run, putting Toronto ahead 4-3. However, the Padres rallied in the eighth inning with an RBI single by Manny Machado and a sacrifice fly by France to secure the 5-4 win before the All-Star break. The Padres now hold a record of 48-48.
Pawol, who debuted as the first female umpire in MLB in August 2025, has previously faced scrutiny. In spring training, she drew criticism for a call on a pitch down the middle that was later confirmed by automated ball-strike data as incorrect.