BILLINGS — Looking back on his lengthy career as an umpire in Major League Baseball, Helena native Brian Knight is in awe.
"I wake up every morning now even still and pinch myself," Knight told MTN Sports during a phone interview on Sunday. "Never in my wildest dreams did I think any of this would have been possible."
It was the stuff of dreams for Knight. But now he is transitioning to the next phase of his life, having been forced into early retirement on Aug. 1 due to a neck injury. He was replaced on the MLB staff by Charlie Ramos. Knight's retirement was initially reported by the Associated Press.
Knight's final major league appearance came on June 26, 2024, in Tampa Bay in a game between the Mariners and Rays. He went into that game not knowing it would be his last.
He'd dealt with neck issues for several years, and it was significant enough for Knight to undergo fusion surgery in 2017. Knight was working behind the plate in Tampa and was hit in the mask with two separate foul tips, one in the seventh inning and another in the ninth.
"Foul tips don't stop after surgery, so it continued to deteriorate over the next several seasons," Knight said. "I kind of knew at that point that the neck was probably done for.
"I continued physical therapy and saw all my doctors, and we came to the decision that it was time to shut it down."
Knight, 50, said his neck problems originated from the umpiring grind, particularly the inherent risks of setting up behind the plate — years of squatting and leaning while keeping his neck in a fixed, straight position. And a 95 mph foul tip to the mask can do damage.
When it happens hundreds of times over the course of a career, it adds up.
So after 30 years umpiring in professional baseball, Knight's time on the diamond came to an end. Though he's grateful for each moment.
"It's definitely not the way I would have hoped to go out," Knight said. "But having said that, I started this very young. I went into the minor leagues when I was 20, and I had all the experiences and basically did everything you do in this profession.
"I was lucky and blessed enough to have a great career despite the way it ended."
Knight's watershed moment came in 2023 when he was selected to umpire the World Series that year between the Rangers and Diamondbacks. Knight was working home plate in the decisive Game 5, and made a called third strike on Arizona's Ketel Marte to end the series as the Rangers won their first championship.
But he was also on the field for four no-hitters, and behind the plate for two: the Red Sox John Lester against the Royals on May 19, 2008, and the Dodgers’ Josh Beckett against the Phillies on May 25, 2014.
Knight was also picked to umpire in two separate World Baseball Classics.
Knight said he is especially thankful for the support he's received from his family — especially his late father Jim, a renowned Helena umpire and referee who passed away in 2021; his mother Jinny, who Knight called "a hero;" and of course Knight's wife Kim.
"I look back on everything with a sense of awe and gratitude, mostly for all the support I had," Knight said. "It's a tough life living on the road, and you've got to have a really good support system keeping you going."
Knight first began umpiring in professional baseball in 1995 locally in the Pioneer League and eventually made his major league debut in 2001. He was added full-time to the MLB staff in 2011 and worked 17 big league seasons, including 15 in a row.
So what's in store now for Knight? He said he isn't quite sure of his next professional move.
But the fact that Knight makes his home in Newcastle, Calif., roughly 30 miles northeast of Sacramento, affords him the chance to attend games of the former Oakland A's, who are playing the next couple seasons at nearby Sutter Health Park.
That also allows Knight to keep in touch with his umpiring colleagues. And he'll continue to support those still grinding it out on a daily basis in a growing and ever-changing enterprise.
(To that point, Knight said he was "thrilled" to see Jen Pawol break the glass ceiling on Aug. 9 and become the first female to umpire in the major leagues, calling her initial outing "a fantastic debut under enormous pressure." Knight also has confidence the increased use and advancements in video replay will benefit the 150-year-old game.)
Knight said he plans to travel more and make more frequent trips to his native Montana — "the kind of stuff I used to daydream about when I was in a hotel room in Cincinnati in August," he said. He also plans to devote time to helping young umpires both near where he lives and in Montana whenever he returns.
In the end it simply comes down to baseball, which has been at the center of Knight's entire life and gave him the opportunity to reach heights in the game he couldn't foresee years ago.
"Growing up in the '70s and '80s we'd spend our afternoons playing Wiffle ball and trading baseball cards; pre-internet and all that kind of stuff," Knight said. "So I grew up a baseball fan. And being around the ballpark so much with my dad ... it's been a part of my life as far back as I can remember.
"To have a kids' sport provide me with a wonderful life at the end, it gives me goosebumps just talking about it now. I'm excited to see what the rest of life after baseball has to offer."
