What UmpScores does

UmpScores is a Boston-based data analytics company that provides independent, transparent performance statistics and ratings for MLB home plate umpires. Founded in 2019 out of academic research conducted at Boston University, the company operates under the legal entity RefRating d/b/a UmpScores and delivers its content through a website (umpscores.com) and a free mobile app available on iOS and Android. Its core analytical engine ingests Statcast pitch-tracking data from Baseball Savant alongside official MLB statistics to build custom player-specific strike zones, then applies machine learning techniques — including outlier removal and close-call simulations — to measure umpire accuracy (Bad Call Ratio), precision (Consistency Metric), and situational impact (Critical Calls Analysis). In 2023 the company introduced cBCR (close Call Bad Call Ratio), a refined metric that isolates performance on marginal pitches within a baseball's diameter of the plate's edge.

The product surface consists of the Daily Scorecard (per-game breakdowns of every MLB contest), an Umpire Rankings Archive with season-by-season metrics, original editorial content (The Monthly Call, The Final Call), and biographies of all MLB umpires. Distribution is product-led: a free app, organic social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram), SEO via the company website, and a blog with monthly analytical articles. Revenue mechanics are not publicly disclosed; no pricing tiers, advertising partnerships, or B2B data-licensing arrangements are identified in the source material. The company's primary customer segments are MLB baseball fans (primary) and sports media/journalists (secondary), with named external voices including Drew Creasman of DNVR and Andy Uhler of NPR Marketplace. The team disclosed in the data is limited to two named analysts (Andrew Trapp and Brandon Cohen), and the company uses a generic Gmail contact address, signaling a lean operational footprint.

Name

UmpScores

Legal name

RefRating

Website

https://umpscores.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

UmpScores is a Boston-based data analytics company that provides independent, transparent statistics and ratings for MLB home plate umpires via a free mobile app and website, serving baseball fans and sports media with proprietary metrics built on Statcast data.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Analytics Software

NAICS

Spectator Sports (71121)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Esports Data, Analytics & Integrity Services (Stats, Anti-Cheat, Anti-Fraud) (MPAFADAI)

Keywords

• Sports analytics
• Umpire performance metrics
• Baseball statistics
• Sports data platform
• Umpire ratings

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Free App with Statistics: The company offers a free mobile app providing umpire statistics, game scorecards, and biographies of all MLB umpires. Revenue generation model not explicitly disclosed but likely includes advertising or future premium features.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

UmpScores operates a free web platform and mobile app that deliver transparent, independent home plate umpire statistics, ratings, and analysis for MLB. Core deliverables include daily game scorecards with accuracy and consistency metrics, a historical umpire rankings archive, and original reporting on umpire performance trends. The offering is powered by proprietary analytics built on Statcast data and machine learning-based strike zone modeling.

Product overview

UmpScores is a Boston-based data analytics company offering a unified platform centered on MLB home plate umpire statistics and performance ratings. The core offering consists of the UmpScores Website and Mobile App, which together deliver Daily Scorecards, an Umpire Rankings Archive, and original reporting (The Monthly Call). The platform's analytical engine is built around three primary metrics: Bad Call Ratio (BCR) measuring accuracy, the Consistency Metric measuring precision, and Critical Calls Analysis measuring situational impact. A newer metric, cBCR (close Call Bad Call Ratio), was introduced in 2023 to isolate performance on marginal pitches within the close-call zone. All metrics and content are accessible via the website and mobile app, with the archive providing historical performance data by season.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• UmpScores Website/Platform Boston-based web platform providing transparent home plate umpire statistics, ratings, and analysis for MLB games, offering daily scorecards, historical archives, and original reporting on umpire performance. Targeted at baseball fans and sports media.
• UmpScores Mobile App Free mobile application for iOS and Android providing season-by-season statistics and biographies of all MLB umpires, with daily reports on each umpire's performance in every game of the year. Targeted at baseball fans.
• Umpire Rankings Archive

Quantifiable outcome

• League-wide BCR of 7.44% in 2022 season, with over 27,500 missed calls out of nearly 380,000 pitches
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Baseball SavantcoreTechnology or IntegrationPrimary data source providing Statcast pitch tracking data used to build custom player strike zones and measure umpire performance accuracy.
• MLBcoreTechnology or IntegrationData source for official MLB statistics and information used in umpire performance analysis.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Stats Perform: Sports data and AI company providing data, content, and analytics across multiple sports to media and betting clients. Stats Perform is comparable as a sports data and analytics provider but operates across all major sports rather than specializing in MLB umpire performance.
• Second Spectrum: Sports analytics company providing AI-powered tracking and analytics for NBA, MLB, and other leagues. Second Spectrum is comparable as an advanced sports analytics provider using tracking data, though focused on player/team performance rather than umpire evaluation.
• Hawk-Eye Innovations: Sony-owned ball-tracking and officiating technology provider used across tennis, cricket, soccer, and baseball. Hawk-Eye is comparable as officiating technology serving sports leagues, though at an entirely different scale and as a B2B officiating infrastructure provider rather than consumer analytics.
• Sportradar: Global sports data and content company serving sportsbooks, media, and leagues. Sportradar is comparable as a sports analytics data aggregator and B2B content provider, though at vastly greater scale and scope than UmpScores' consumer-focused baseball niche.
• Inside Edge: Established sports data and analytics provider with proprietary officiating and player performance data across multiple sports. Inside Edge is comparable to UmpScores in its focus on officiating analysis but operates at a much larger scale across multiple leagues.

Others

• The Athletic: Subscription sports media company providing deep-dive journalism across MLB and other sports. The Athletic is comparable as a destination for analytically engaged sports fans, and represents both a potential distribution channel for UmpScores content and an indirect competitor for the data-driven sports audience.
• Retrosheet: Non-profit organization providing historical baseball play-by-play data for research. Retrosheet is an enabling peer — it supplies historical MLB data similar to how UmpScores draws on Statcast, and shares UmpScores' research-oriented approach to baseball statistics.

Direct peers

• FanGraphs: Leading sabermetrics platform for MLB providing advanced statistics, fantasy tools, and editorial content to baseball fans. FanGraphs serves the same analytically inclined MLB fan audience as UmpScores and competes for the same consumer mindshare on data-driven baseball content.
• Baseball Savant: MLB's official Statcast-driven analytics platform providing pitch-level data and visualizations. Baseball Savant is UmpScores' primary data source and the most direct comparable in serving MLB fans with advanced pitch and player analytics, though it focuses on player performance rather than umpire evaluation.
• Brooks Baseball: Pitch data and analytics platform providing pitch-level breakdowns using PITCHf/x and Statcast data. Brooks Baseball is highly comparable to UmpScores in its use of pitch tracking data to deliver granular MLB analysis to advanced fans, particularly pitchers and pitching analysts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/umpscores
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• Instagraminstagram.com/umpscores

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about UmpScores