This baseball league will use robot umpires from next season
What's the story
Major League Baseball (MLB) has announced that it will start using robot umpires from the 2026 season. The Automated Ball-Strike System (ABS) will be introduced after successful trials in minor league games, spring training, and events like the 2025 All-Star Game. The ABS is designed to provide a more accurate and fair way of determining balls and strikes, which are currently called by human home plate umpires.
Mechanism
How will the ABS work?
The ABS will not completely replace human umpires but will be called into action when a player challenges an umpire's call. Each team gets two challenges per game, and only the pitcher, catcher, and batter can call for an ABS review. If a player asks for one and the call is overturned, their challenge isn't lost. The process takes about 15 seconds to complete.
Tech details
The technology behind the system
The ABS system employs 12 Hawk-Eye cameras around the field, connected to a T-Mobile private 5G network. These cameras track pitches and determine if they cross home plate within the strike zone. The technology has been successfully used in other sports such as tennis and football to determine if a ball is in or out of play.
Hybrid system
Preference for challenge format influenced decision
The introduction of ABS for challenges strikes a balance between relying on human umpires and adopting a fully automated system. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said, "The strong preference from players for the Challenge format over using the technology to call every pitch was a key factor in determining the system we are announcing today."