Robot umpires area a step closer to the major leagues.
The electronic strike zone will be used in all 30 Triple-A stadiums for the 2023 season, according to an ESPN report. The move is seen as a major step toward the technology soon being utilized at the highest level of the sport.
Half of the Triple-A games this year will be played with all of the calls determined by an electronic strike zone; the other half with the Automatic Balls and Strikes (ABS) challenge system similar to what is used in pro tennis, per ESPN.
Each team will get three challenges per game, with teams keeping their challenges if ruled correct.
Currently, MLB has no concrete date to use the ABS system in the bigs, though it has been used progressively in the minors.
The electronic strike zone was first used in the Atlantic League for an All-Star Game in 2019. That same year it was also deployed for the Arizona Fall League. In 2021, it was used in select Low-A parks and last season the full ABS was used in some Triple-A games.
The Low-A Southeast League adopted the challenge system, with plate umps still calling balls and strikes but batters, pitchers and catchers had the ability to challenge a call.
According to ESPN, feedback on the challenge system was positive with some believing it to be a good first step in the technology, though hardly everyone would be happy about the potential change.
“If there’s an issue with balls and strikes, just get guys that do a better job of calling balls and strikes,” Aaron Judge said in July. “I think the umpires do a great job as it is, and that’s part of the game — the human element.”
Though it won’t be implemented at the big league level in the coming season, there are other changes, technological and otherwise, that will be, including a pitch clock, a limiting of defensive shifts, larger bases, and a restriction on the number of times a pitcher can attempt a pick-off. All of which are intended to pick up the sport’s pace.