Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
The so-called “robot umpires” have officially debuted at the MLB level after being introduced for spring training. Some players aren’t thrilled about the change, but the new technology has treated us to one of the funniest moments of the preseason thanks to what veteran ump Mike Muchlinski had to say after an ABS challenge upheld a call he made.
Every sport has its fair share of purists who recoil at the mere suggestion of tweaks to their beloved game, but baseball fans are known for being particularly resistant to rule changes that threaten to alter the sacred fabric of America’s Pastime.
However, that hasn’t prevented the MLB from introducing a number of fairly revolutionary changes that have ended up having a positive impact, as the long-awaited arrival of instant replay and the pitch clock that has been almost universally praised as a much-needed addition have turned out to be incredibly welcome additions to the game.
It took the MLB longer than it probably should have to introduce the instant replay system designed to minimize the impact the human element has on the outcome of games, although it was a bit of a half measure when you consider it has declined to adopt a similar system when it comes to standardizing the ways balls and strike are called.
It’s kind of wild that the biggest baseball league on the planet is still letting human beings be the ultimate adjudicators when it comes to determining which pitches pass through the strike zone. However, it seemed like it was only going to be a matter of time until that change when the powers that be started experimenting with the “automated ball-strike challenge system” (referred to as “ABS”) at the minor league level in 2019.
The MLB still hasn’t used ABS in any regular season games, but we’ve gotten a glimpse at the seemingly inevitable future when the “Hawk-Eye” technology used to track balls and strikes recently made its grand debut at spring training.
We’ve already seen a number of challenges, but none of them have produced a more entertaining moment than the one that transpired when the Angels and the Padres faced off on Tuesday.
Omar Cruz was on the mound for San Diego when Carter Kieboom stepped up to the plate at the top of the 7th, and Padres catcher Brett Sullivan opted to challenge the ball call in the hopes a full count would turn into a strikeout after a pitch skimmed past the corner of the zone.
Home plate umpire Mike Muchlinski (an almost 20-year MLB vet who was in the middle of the pack on the accuracy front last season) had ABS take a second look before confirming his call was “surprisingly correct,” which elicited audible laughter from fans inside the stadium and a hearty chuckle from the broadcasters covering the contest.
“The call is surprisingly correct.” 🤣
(MLB x @TMobile) pic.twitter.com/jtDwTzchYQ
— MLB (@MLB) February 25, 2025
Well played.