Umpires Will Soon Have a Direct Line to Call Reviewers—Even Without Challenges
Major League Baseball is giving umpires a new tool to ensure accuracy, allowing them to privately seek feedback on ball and strike calls.
- MLB will allow umpires to ask for feedback on calls during half-inning breaks.
- Umpires can flag pitches during a game to request a review during the next break.
- The automated ball-strike (ABS) challenge system will allow teams to overturn incorrect calls.
- This move aims to provide umpires with the same type of immediate feedback already available to hitters and coaches.
“Did I miss that pitch?” It’s a question Major League Baseball umpires will soon be able to ask a league official—even when a pitch hasn’t been challenged. The automated ball-strike (ABS) challenge system arrives in MLB this season, a major development that gives each team the ability to overturn an umpire’s ball and strike calls. When a challenge is issued, an ABS operator at the ballpark will review an electronic system that tracks the ball with high-tech cameras and pass along the verdict via the scoreboard.
But the system goes further. Umpires will also be able to privately ask the ABS operator whether they got a call right without a challenge during regular-season and postseason games. This is a significant shift, designed to enhance accuracy and consistency on the field.
A Feedback Loop for Umpires
For years, MLB players and coaches have had access to in-game video, allowing them to analyze swings, mechanics, and the strike zone. MLB and the union believed it made sense to deliver a similar opportunity to umpires. “When you think about it, you know, hitters are coming in, looking at the iPad,” said Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider. “They’re looking at their swing or the zone, whatever it is, and kind of getting immediate feedback. I think it’s a good tool. How quickly it kind of adapts or evolves, we’ll see. But that’s what we were told, that they’re going to be getting some pretty consistent feedback.”
MLB clarified that the umpire must initiate the feedback request—the ABS operator won’t proactively offer it. Feedback will be delivered during half-inning breaks, though umpires can flag a pitch in real-time, indicating they’d like a review during the upcoming break. Flagging a pitch isn’t required to receive feedback, but it can expedite the process.
The feedback will be pitch-specific. For example, an umpire might ask about the location of a 2-2 pitch to Shohei Ohtani, rather than requesting a general assessment of their strike zone for the day. Umpires already have a sense of their overall performance, and the challenge system will provide even faster feedback on missed calls.
Umpires received similar in-game feedback during spring training last year and will again this year. This season marks the first time the feedback will be available during both the regular season and the playoffs.
“They’re going to do a way better job of being kind of interactive with the booth upstairs and giving umpires feedback in real time,” Schneider said. “It may take a little bit of time, especially spring training will be good, but I don’t think it’s going to be as, like, outrageous as we think. I think that they’re going to be listening to feedback as the game goes.”
How the System Works in Practice
Umpires will use their existing earpieces—used for various functions—to communicate with the ABS operator when seeking feedback on a pitch. If a challenge result can’t be displayed on the scoreboard due to a technical issue, the operator will deliver the verdict directly to the umpire via the earpiece. Umpires are instructed to use the earpiece only when needed, to preserve their hearing for crucial calls.
Potential challenges remain. How comfortable will umpires be audibly flagging a pitch in real-time, especially if the batter or catcher overhears a hint of uncertainty? There’s also the possibility of fan accusations that the league is attempting to manipulate outcomes by directly influencing the strike zone.
“I know the goal isn’t to try to bully an umpire into saying one way or another, and these guys have been doing it for a long time,” Schneider said. “I’m interested to see kind of how the back and forth goes kind of in real time.”
