Back in September 2025, the MLB made the groundbreaking decision to allow technology to overrule home plate umpire calls. Previously, the strike zone was a subjective concept determined by the umpire, and the only way to protest a ball or strike was through futile bickering with no impact on changing the outcome. Now, in the 2026 season, that is all set to change.
The newly implemented Automated Ball-Strike Challenge System authorizes players to appeal strike zone calls made by the home plate umpire by calling on a system that instantaneously tracks each pitch and displays where it crossed the plate within an objective strike zone, similar to what viewers see during live broadcasts.
In theory, an automated strike zone seems like a simple, straightforward tool to help assure calls are made correctly in the biggest moments, and the ABS Challenge System specifically acts as a middle ground that preserves human umpires rather than completely replacing them with technology. The rules do not slow down the pace of play and the system itself has received mostly positive reviews after being tested in the minor leagues and during this past MLB spring training.
However, while implementing the ABS system is not an entire shift towards technological refereeing, it is a dangerous first step toward a future where umpires are obsolete and every call is left to automation.
For fans and players, there’s an obvious desire for every call on the field to be accurate. In any sport, the ability to challenge and review questionable decisions can be essential in determining the outcome of a game. Even when lengthy reviews occasionally slow the pace of play, replay is generally viewed as a positive and reliable way to correct human error.
But at what point does the pursuit of perfect accuracy go too far? When does the demand for objective calls begin to override the human element that makes sports what they are?
The introduction of the ABS system suggests that baseball may have already crossed that line. For the 2026 MLB season, each team has the opportunity to challenge two calls made by the home plate umpire per game — and can retain a challenge if the automated system overturns the call. For now, this makes the ABS system a strategic tool saved for only the biggest moments or obvious missed calls. Yet as players and fans become more accustomed to referring to technology, it feels like a complete ABS takeover is inevitable.
But moving in this direction risks losing something far more important than a bad call: the imperfect human element that makes sports so unique and fun.
Sports are not supposed to be predictable. They are played by humans, not programmed systems that operate solely based on a rulebook.
Our society is already overly concerned with the rise of artificial intelligence and the threat it poses to the job market. Let’s not let it take over the sacred space that is sports and turn athletes and umpires into robots on a playing field.
