One of the biggest pieces of news to come out of the MLB All Star break was yesterday’s pronouncement from Commish Rob Manfred that MLB will be having conversations about returning the uniforms for the game to teams’ regular uniforms, and ending the league-specific uniforms teams have worn for the past four All Star games. But that wasn’t the only news.
Yesterday, Commish Manfred also discussed the possibility of “robot” umpires being used in MLB games for ball and strike calls. Now, before we get into the weeds, we’re not talking about an actual robot replacing any of the umpires (including the home plate ump). What MLB is referring to in this instance is what is known as a “challenge system,” (similar to what now exists for some plays) for calling balls and strikes. Actual umpires would still be used behind home plate (and all the bases), and would still make “ball” and “strike” calls, only if the rule were to be adopted, those would be subject to challenges, just the way many plays now are already in the bigs.
According to ESPN, “MLB has been experimenting with an automated ball-strike system, or ABS, at the minor league level for the past five years and began using it at all Triple-A ballparks in 2023. Initially, half the games used ABS for every call and the other half used the challenge system, but MLB went exclusively to a challenge system — wherein the plate umpire calls balls and strikes as usual and teams have a limited number of calls that can be reviewed — on June 25.”
The latter challenge system is what Manfred is discussing amongst the league big-wigs and it might be used on a trial basis in Spring Training of 2025. But the technology that would be used — ABS — could conceivably be fully automated at some point, and will be the same technology that would be used under a challenge system. The way that system works is the home plate umpire is positioned behind the catcher, as he normally is, and he has a set of ear buds that let him know virtually instantaneously whether a pitch is in the strike zone or not (i.e. either a ball or strike). He then makes the call based upon the ABS. The ABS works by positioning a series of cameras around the stadium which can ascertain, within 1/100th of an inch, whether a ball is inside or outside the zone.
Manfred only said he “hopes to test the ABS system” as early as 2025 Spring Training, but even that’s not set in stone. He hedged by stating “technical issues surrounding the definition of the strike zone” will need to be ironed out even before it is tested by major league players. But he added those technical issues could be worked out in Spring Training.
“We need ’25 to do the spring training test if we can get these issues resolved, which will make ’26 a viable possibility.”
Here’s an example of how the ABS works in the minor leagues.
There are other issues too.
For one thing there are the umpires themselves. According to ESPN, “Another wrinkle is the expiration of the umpires’ collective bargaining agreement at the end of the 2024 season, with MLB’s desire for ABS expected to be a major part of the negotiations.”
You probably recall there were some major changes made to MLB rules in 2023, some of which (like the pitch clock) were well received. Others not so. And the players’ union wants full input for any robo-ump decisions.
Tony Clark, executive director of the MLB Players Association, called player input on ABS “interesting.”
“There are those that have no interest in it at all; there are those that have concerns even with the challenge system as to how the strike zone itself is going to be considered, what that looks like, how consistent it is going to be, what happens in a world where Wi-Fi goes down in a ballpark or the tech acts up on any given night,” Clark said in an earlier session with the BBWAA. “We’re seeing those issues, albeit in minor league ballparks. We do not want to end up in a world where in a major league ballpark we end up with more questions than answers as to the integrity of that night’s game, or the calls associated with it.”
So…will we actually see the ABS challenge system in Spring Training of 2025? It’s too early to say, but it’s definitely a possibility. I recall a similar situation happening in the world of tennis a few years ago, where linespeople were replaced by cameras to make in/out calls. It was met with some resistance at first (and a challenge system was implemented as well), but most of the major tournaments on the “show courts” now have automated in/out calls without any linespeople present on the court. Some tournaments have them on all courts. It’s looking like baseball may be following a similar path.
Your thoughts on ABS in general? Should MLB adopt the system, or do you prefer the traditional role of the home plate umpire having all that power, without possibility of ball or strike calls being challenged?
[Big thanks to Paul for pointing me towards this topic!]
Baseball is a game played by humans, umpired by humans, and humans make mistakes. That is OK with me, I don’t need or want perfection.
International Volleyball went completely to Hawkeye for line calls with ball because coaches would challenge the line calls. They went in the direction of saying block touches, foot faults and net touches are more important to challenge than line calls. It has made the game flow better. And you get 2 missed challenges a set. Sometimes they are used as a time out (slow down play when you have used your time outs)
I’ve been to MiLB games with the challenge system. It’s not too bad. It really doesn’t impact the pace of play all that much. I would not want full robo umps, though
Same here. I’ve seen it used at a few Durham Bulls games, and it was actually kind of cool when the call showed up on the big screen…
Agreed. Our local MiLB league started using the challenge system this year. It’s barely noticeable and the way they do it only takes an extra couple seconds. It’s not at all like the time spent challenging other plays. Doesn’t interfere with the pace of the game at all and the right calls are made. I like it.
I probably just need to read up more, but I have never been able to understand how ABS defines the top of the strike zone. The video embedded in this story only confuses me more. It implies that there is a formula based on height, but look at the output for Aaron Judge. A pitch that passes by his belly button is a ball?
I clearly have not paid close attention to baseball in a long while. The strike apparently is no longer “between the knees and the letters”?
Give me the 100% full camera ABS system with the human umpires still there to actually relay the call (and maybe add a little more pizazz to it since they are no longer on the hook for the actual call. Gimme some more STEEEEEEE-RIKE with a little dance, that sort of thing haha).
But seriously, yes, baseball is a sport played by humans with human error. But the *players* play the sport, not the umpires. And the *rules* are fact-based. A ball is either a strike or it isn’t. A player is either out or they’re not. Basing the result of each play and potentially the game itself (i.e. the Galarraga incident), which are *fact* based, on the *opinion* of someone is crazy, if it can be avoided. And thanks to technology, now that can be almost entirely avoided.
Great points here…
THIS! Very well said!
This, this, this!
It’s laughable that one of the concerns is Consistency. MLB umps are infamously inconsistent.
After seeing the Tim Donahey documentary, I’m 100% in favor of anything that takes away the ability of a single ump/ref to impact the results of a game. Let’s not forget that just a few years ago Jim Joyce ruined a perfect game for no explicable reason, and Angel Hernandez’s legacy is that he ruled subjectively, not objectively. Give me the robots, and keep the game clean.
I prefer the possibility of ball or strike calls being challenged, works great in tennis.
Actually tennis has gotten away from challenges and some tournaments now have all the calls being called by “robots”. And the ATP has announced that they will be using electronic calls for 2025. Much better, and quicker. Wimbledon hasn’t yet, and it’s worse off. NY Times had an article about Wimbledon, and how it’s time for them to drop the line judges.
I cannot comprehend the mind of the person who believes bad calls and officiating make competition better.
Just have the umpire back behind the plate being told in his earpiece if it’s a ball or strike. No reason to have it just for overrules. Tennis first did this for overrules, but now it’s much better for all calls.
I appreciate the accuracy of in/out calls in tennis. I believe this technology would be a wonderful addition to the MLB game. How could more accurate balls/strikes call be a bad thing? There also is no need to replace umpires, as there are still other aspects of the game that require human judgment/interaction/intervention.
I’m in favor of an automated strike zone. Whatever technology is needed to accomplish that, I say do it. It’s a sick feeling watching your team lose on a horrendous strike three call or to have the pitcher on your team getting pinched for his entire outing. Nothing will ever be 100% accurate, but it can be a lot better than what the umps do today.
Phil, why do some of my comments get delayed, “waiting moderation”? Especially being a paying UW+ member? I understand that you want people to follow the rules, and I support that. However, nothing that had been moderated has been deleted. Why not just warn people if they get out of hand, and drop them if they are egregious or repeat offenders?
I wish I could answer that, Rick. There are a few things that set off the “spam” filter, including certain words or phrases, but I honestly don’t know what causes some comments to get caught in moderation. I or Jimmer try to monitor the comments as best we can (I know when I’m by my PC I check the comments every few minutes). I do know that comments with multiple links will sometimes get caught up because the filter believes it to be a bot, but other than that, I don’t know why some get caught and some don’t. I’ll see if I can get a better answer from the webmaster.
Having seen ABS at work in minor league games on TV, and acknowledging the inconsistency of some MLB umpires in calling balls and strikes, I’m all for ABS. I’d take it this weekend if I could.
I’m pretty old school on just about everything, but I love this idea. I’m tired of horrible calls, and umpires having “their own” strike zones, and guys like Greg Maddux, who didn’t need any help, getting strikes called six inches off the black.
The sooner the better.
Long over due.. Bring on the Robots
I watch a lot of minor-league baseball closely, and I think the challenge system hits the right balance of keeping things consistent and keeping the game resembling baseball. Full robot strike zones leads to a lot of weird strikes that have never been strikes before — a lot of high curveballs and backdoor sliders — and it doesn’t reward good catching in the same way.
Umpiring has gotten significantly better and more consistent in the past 20 years as MLB has hired the best and brightest working through the minor leagues, and I’m willing to have this compromise as a result.
Robots calling strikes and balls? Heck yes! Nobody loses a job….and nobody gets peeved at umps.
I hate this in-between garbage. If you’re going to turn to robo-ump to get the call right *some* of the time, why not just let robo-ump get the call right ALL of the time?
I’m fine with human error being a part of the game, but I’ll never understand why if there is the capability to remove that from the equation, why not just go ahead and do it?
Same thing with the NFL and their “three challenges and you’re out” when they could easily just have a replay official AT THE GAME and can buzz down to correct calls on the field without waiting for a coach to see a replay and throw the red flag and then discuss with the ref what they’re challenging and then the ref walk all the way over to the monitor, blah, blah, blah…
The NFL’s first replay system worked the way you describe, and there were too many delays where they were trying to decide if it was an incomplete pass or one-yard gain on 3rd-and-9. The current system allows the coaches to decide what’s important enough to review, as well as the scoring/turnover plays where a review is automatic.
Rewatch Eric Gregg in the 1997 NLCS and then explain why ABS is a bad thing.
The meme is now a useful infographic! “You may be very tall, but I am Jose Altuve” :)
Go ahead and do this. In soccer we have goal line technology and offside decisions accurate to less than an inch, we even have balls that give a signal when touched with the hand as we saw in Euro 24. The ref and VAR still decide, but based on more or less undeniable evidence. I think cricker bowling decisions are also made this way and ofcourse tennis and its lines is already functioning. I expect three point lines in basketball to give some sort of signal too in the future when a player touches them when taking off.
Watching Wimbledon this past weekend, the system they use is staggeringly good and yields instant verdicts. The best part… the digital replay showed little blades of grass scattering as the ball hit the ground. That is the kind of detail we can appreciate around here.
Bring on the robot umpires for all ball/strike calls and then we’ll be able to watch games on TV without that infernal strike zone box superimposed over the plate. The only human error I want to see on the field is one made by a player. If the technology is there, frickin’ use it!