WOODBURY– We’ve seen over the years technology making its way into sports more and more. Many sports now use some sort of AI reviewing system. This year Major League Baseball was one of those sports to use AI. They made a new incentive called ABS ( Automated Balls and Strikes) review.
ABS review is a new incentive in the MLB; it allows hitters, pitchers, and catchers to review a called ball or strike. Teams have an initial two challenges, and reclaim them if a call is successful. This is a big advancement in the sport, as this is the first time you can actually challenge the umps strike and ball calls. And for the game of baseball, America’s oldest pastime, this change isn’t just new, it’s revolutionary.
“I think the incentive is great for the game, for years umpires have had a big impact on the game and mostly in a bad way, ” said senior Henry Keil. “Now with the reviews, players can give themselves more opportunities to impact the game.”
Data so far has shown over 50% of challenges have been successful, initial data shows catchers have had a 56% success rate while batter have had 50% success rate. The Cincinnati Reds and New York Mets are among the top teams with the most successful challenges, with a 68.2% total success rate.
“I like how batters have more opportunities at the plate, instead of getting the bat taken out there hand on strike calls that are wrong,” said senior Brayden Whipple.
One of the reasons the MLB was so hesitant to add this new incentive was because they thought it would make the games longer, which they were trying to lower with their other new rule of pitch clock; data from The New York Times has shown though that challenges take an average of 13.8 seconds, and adds just under a minute to game time.
“I don’t like how it can change the tempo of the game,” says Whipple. “It can make the game longer especially if calls are constantly being reviewed.”
This isn’t the first change of the game. MLB has introduced numerous incentives in the last couple years, including the most known one of the pitch clock; Adding this was meant to speed up the game, which worked as the games on average have decreased around 25 minutes.
“I hate it, I think all sports should go back to human calls,” says Nonnewaug School Officer Chris O’Toole. “I don’t like how it’s not fully accurate to the batter and it’s one zone but batters set up differently and for years umpires have been calling pitches that land before the plate, but now since the review calls the pitches when they cross the plate, umpires have to switch their ways.”
MLB is America’s pastime game, and have been opposed to changing anything to the game for decades. These new incentives are a way to help the game, although there might be mixed reviews, overall these rules are meant for a better experience for both fans and players.
