The box scores showed two 4-2 Baltimore wins in Wednesday’s split doubleheader at Camden Yards. The more unusual line was on the umpiring card: Austin Jones and Tyler Jones, identical twins, became the first twins to work together on an MLB crew.
| Game | Result | Austin Jones | Tyler Jones |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | Orioles 4, Blue Jays 2 | First base | Second base |
| Game 2 | Orioles 4, Blue Jays 2 | Second base | First base |
A long-awaited crew assignment
For the Jones brothers, the doubleheader was more than a novel sight for fans who noticed two nearly identical umpires stationed around the infield. It was the realization of a shared ambition that began when they were teenagers near Charleston, South Carolina.
“We’ve dreamed about this forever,” Tyler Jones said.
The brothers started umpiring at 15 after the father of a friend needed officials for Little League games. Both had played baseball and followed the game, so they took the opportunity together. At 18, they attended umpire school at the same time, and by 2014 they had reached professional baseball, including one assignment together in the Gulf Coast League.
That early professional appearance did not lead to many more shared games. Their minor league paths usually sent them to separate leagues, and they had not been placed on the same crew in Double-A or Triple-A. Before Baltimore, their only other reunion on a field came in the 2024 Arizona Fall League, when they worked the Fall Stars Game.
The call came during a nap
Both brothers still work chiefly in Triple-A while receiving occasional Major League fill-in assignments. Austin has been called up since 2024, while Tyler began receiving those opportunities in 2025.
The chance to work together in Baltimore came together quickly. Tyler had handled Monday night’s Blue Jays-Orioles game, before Tuesday’s postponement. On Tuesday afternoon, he was asleep in his Baltimore hotel room when Austin called from home.
Austin had been on scheduled time off and was preparing to travel to Washington for the Mets-Nationals series that weekend. Instead, he told his brother he was driving from Charleston to Baltimore after his supervisor assigned him to the Wednesday crew.
Tyler initially reminded Austin that he had been sleeping. Austin’s response was simple: there was no game that night after the rainout.
The brothers had been told the previous year that the league would try to arrange a joint assignment if circumstances allowed. Scheduling never cooperated then, and Tyler said this season had remained uncertain until the sudden call created a scramble to get family members to Camden Yards.
Family in the stands, brothers on the bases
Their parents, wives and Austin’s three children were present for all 18 innings, with a hotel break between games. In the opener, Austin handled first base and Tyler took second. For the nightcap, they traded places.
Tyler said the clubhouse time mattered as much as the innings. The brothers speak daily, often about baseball and the day-to-day demands of umpiring, but sharing the pregame routine made the occasion different. They were able to see each other in the umpire room, play cards before first pitch and spend time with the rest of the crew.
The first game felt surreal. By the second, the history of the assignment had started to settle in.
Austin said his wife reminded him not to see Tyler solely as another partner across the diamond. Umpires check on one another throughout every pitch and play, but she encouraged him to take a moment and recognize his brother for what he was. Austin did exactly that during the nightcap.
