{{short description|American baseball umpire (born 1963)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}} {{Infobox baseball biography | number = 39 | name = Paul Nauert | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1963|7|7}} | birth_place = Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | image = Paul Nauert 2013.jpg | width = | caption = Nauert in 2013 | debutleague = MLB | debutyear = May 19, 1995 | highlights = Special Assignments *All-Star Game (2009) *Wild Card Game (2020) *Division Series (2004, 2008, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2017) *League Championship Series (2016) * World Series (2017) | hofdate = | hofvote = | hofmethod = |finalyear=September 30, 2020}} '''Paul Edward Nauert''' ({{respell|NART||}}) (born July 7, 1963) is an American retired professional baseball umpire. He worked for the National League from 1995 to 1999 and for Major League Baseball from 2002 until his retirement in 2022. Nauert worked the 2017 World Series.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=2020 Major League Baseball Umpire Guide |url=https://www.stevetheump.com/reports/2020%20Umpire%20Media%20Guide.pdf |website=Major League Baseball |pages=8, 48 |via=Steve the Ump}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite web |date=2019 |title=Paul Nauert |url=https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/N/Pnauep901.htm |access-date=July 4, 2019 |work=Retrosheet}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Rogers |first=Jesse |date=December 29, 2022 |title=Sources: 10 MLB umps retiring, most since '99 |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/35341465/sources-10-mlb-umps-retiring-most-99 |access-date=December 29, 2022 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Ten umpires promoted to Major League Staff |url=https://www.mlb.com/press-release/press-release-ten-umpires-promoted-to-major-league-staff |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=MLB.com |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Novelly |first=Thomas |title=Two umpires with Kentucky roots will be making the tough calls for the 113th World Series |url=https://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/mlb/2017/10/24/kentucky-umpires-major-league-baseball-world-series/794133001/ |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=The Courier-Journal |language=en-US}}</ref>
Nauert graduated from the Harry Wendelstedt Umpires School in 1988, finishing at the top of his class. He later taught at the school.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Camp Instructors |url=http://baseballumpirecamps.com/page/instructors |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=baseballumpirecamps.com}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Wallace |first=Rebecca |date=May 2, 2019 |title=Meet Paul Nauert: MLB Umpire with Deep Faith |url=https://www.ngumc.org/newsdetail/meet-paul-nauert-mlb-umpire-with-deep-faith-12804971 |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=North Georgia United Methodist Church}}</ref> He also attended Jefferson Community College.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" />
Nauert worked in minor leagues in the Appalachian League (1988), Midwest League (1989–1990), Florida Instructional League (1988–1990), Southern League (1991–1992), and International League (1993–1998).<ref name=":3" /> He was the base umpire during the 27-inning, eight-hour-and-15-minute, Bluefield at Burlington game of June 24, 1988, that ended at 3:27 am the next morning.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |title=I Don't Care If I Ever Get Back: Marathons Lasting 20 or More Innings |url=https://sabr.org/journal/article/i-dont-care-if-i-ever-get-back-marathons-lasting-20-or-more-innings/ |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=Society for American Baseball Research}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=McKay |first=K. |date=2018-06-25 |title=The 27th-Inning Stretch |url=https://www.ourstate.com/the-27th-inning-stretch/ |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=Our State |language=en-US |quote=Umpires: P-Pete Hayes, 1-Paul Nauert.}}</ref>
Nauert umpired his first National League game on May 19, 1995. His father attended the game, sitting next to an empty seat reserved for Nauert's deceased mother.<ref name=":1" /> Nauert was one of 22 umpires whose resignations were accepted in 1999 as part of a failed union negotiating strategy. He later said the incident was personally devastating and almost led to him getting divorced.<ref name=":2" /> On being rehired in 2002, he became part of the Major League Baseball umpire staff.
Nauert has worked the 2020 American League Wild Card Series, the 2004 American League Division Series (ALDS), the 2008 National League Division Series (NLDS), the 2010 NLDS, the 2013 NLDS, the 2014 ALDS, the 2016 National League Championship Series, and the 2017 NLDS. He was a part of the crew that worked both the {{baseball year|2008}} MLB China Series, the first MLB games ever played in China, and the 2008 Japan Opening Series. Nauert also worked the 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.<ref name=":0" />
Nauert was known for having a large strike zone.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hale |first=Jonathan |date=2007-11-28 |title=A zone of their own |url=https://tht.fangraphs.com/a-zone-of-their-own/ |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=The Hardball Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Malinowski |first=Eric |date=June 15, 2012 |title=Better Know An Umpire: Paul Nauert |url=https://deadspin.com/better-know-an-umpire-paul-nauert-5917574/ |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=Deadspin}}</ref> Boston University professor Mark T. Williams ranked Nauert the ninth worst umpire at calling balls and strikes in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Mark T. |date=2019-04-08 |title=MLB Umpires Missed 34,294 Pitch Calls in 2018. Time for Robo-umps? |url=https://www.bu.edu/articles/2019/mlb-umpires-strike-zone-accuracy |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=Boston University |language=en}}</ref> In 2020, Nauert's final year umpiring games, Williams' website UmpScores.com ranked Nauert the 11th worst umpire in the majors.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Archives |url=https://www.umpscores.com/umpire-rankings-archive |access-date=2025-03-18 |website=UmpScores |language=en}}</ref>
Nauert is married with four children.<ref name=":3" /> He is a member of the United Methodist Church.<ref name=":2" />
==See also== {{Portal|Biography|Baseball}} * Lists of Major League Baseball umpires
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *Career umpiring information from [https://web.archive.org/web/20180805114056/http://www.mlb.com/mlb/official_info/umpires/bio.jsp?id=3053 MLB], or [https://www.thebaseballcube.com/content/umpire_card/189163/ The Baseball Cube], or [http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/N/Pnauep901.htm Retrosheet]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nauert, Paul}} Category:1963 births Category:Living people Category:Sportspeople from Louisville, Kentucky Category:Major League Baseball umpires Category:National League umpires