NEWSLETTER
Umpire Manny Gonzalez missed a season-high 27 calls in the Cubs-Giants game last night. His rough performance was on full display, when he called three strikes as balls to Cody Bellinger in a four-pitch walk late in the game (Michael: Not that I was complaining about that…).
Cody Bellinger walked on four pitches during an at bat where he saw three strikes pic.twitter.com/ZIiYNPqgOh
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 18, 2024
According to Umpire Auditor on X, Gonzalez called 13 pitches that SHOULD have been strikes “balls,” and 14 pitches that SHOULD have been balls “strikes.” Yikes.
That all feels quite relevant today, as MLB takes the next step towards an automated strike zone. Or, at least, their preferred version of that. Here are the details.
MLB to Continue ABS Experiment at the Triple-A Level Next Week
Major League Baseball is taking another step toward automating the ball and strike calls in baseball today. According to Jessee Rodgers of ESPN, Major League Baseball sent a memo to farm directors indicating that all Triple-A games will use the automated ball-strike (ABS) challenge system, instead of full ABS, which was previously used for half the week, beginning on June 25. In other words, they had been testing out two different versions of an automated strike zone – one with a challenge system and one where EVERY pitch was called by a robot, so to speak. The challenge system proved better and more popular and so the league is moving forward with just that approach. Clearly more testing is coming, but that is a significant step forward and a signal of what type of system could make its way to MLB sooner than later.
“The move is another indication that the league is inching toward implementing the challenge system at the major league level, though commissioner Rob Manfred has said that move is still at least another season away from happening.”
The memo, obtained by ESPN, says the league’s research indicates that both in-uniform personnel (players and coaches) and fans prefer a challenge system over full ABS.”
In the challenge system, the hitter or catcher can request a real-time review of a strike or ball call to the home plate umpire. The umpire then receives a ruling via an earpiece. In the full ABS, every call is made for the umpire.
Previously, the full ABS was used at Triple-A only for games that took place Tuesday-Thursday. Now, all games will have a challenge system.
