Robot umpire change elicits mixed reactions from MLB Twitter

Our robot overlords are here. A sport that has long been governed by tradition, convention and unwritten rules, baseball is undergoing major changes for the 2023 season. Introduced in the 2010s, Instant His Replay was just the beginning of the game’s embrace of technology. Next season, MLB will introduce a pitch clock to speed up the game. And perhaps in the future, human refereeing may even become obsolete following the latest revolutionary changes that baseball is taking.

According to ESPN’s Buster Olney, every park at Triple-A, the highest minor league affiliate level for an MLB team, will be staffed with robot referees.electronic strike zone will be implemented, and an automatic ball and strike system will be introduced. The authorities will then deploy this system in two different ways. Balls and strikes in half of AAA games are determined by electronic strike zones, and the other half by a system similar to that used in professional tennis.

Simply put, this is a change that puts baseball in uncharted territory.And for a sport long defined by its strict traditions, it’s never easy to embrace change. expressed their anger He said on Twitter that this kind of change would “ruin” the sport.

Sports are being ruined before our eyes. Instant Replay and Pitch Clock are bad enough. This is transformative and not a good thing. It completely transforms the very fabric of what was once an enduring sport.

— Phil Tortora (@PhilipTortora) January 13, 2023

On the other hand, some lament the fact that with the introduction of robot referees, the human element in the game, the subjectivity of the referee, is lost to a greater or lesser extent. In particular, one fan liked the nuance that unpredictable referee strikes he should prepare for the zone.

I know robo referees make the game fairer, but I prefer human referees. I like having to figure out their strike zone.

Robot referees are nice, but I miss humans

— Jorts Lopez (@HenryInAHammock) January 13, 2023

Context is very important, which is why you need a human behind the plate. In that example, any baseball person (umpire, pitcher, hitter, catcher, fan, coach, etc.) knows all too well that it’s not a strike, but the robot he only knows the zone is yes or no. So limit.

— Mario (@DeGenZGZ) January 13, 2023

Nevertheless, the overwhelming sentiment towards the introduction of robot referees seems to be very positive, and for good reason. important to do. In particular, it costs millions of dollars for players in the Major His League. The introduction of robot referees can only help in that regard.

I’d rather have a robot referee than Angel Hernandez’s ego.

— Jake Bobo (@JakeBobo3) January 13, 2023

I would like to have consistency via robots rather than “Who’s the referee and how are you feeling today?”

— Brian Mack (@brian99xt) January 13, 2023

long awaited

— Mavs/Magic Draft (@MavsDraft) January 13, 2023

It is not yet known when this drastic change will be implemented in majors. It all depends on whether the Triple-A implementation works as intended. That said, the arrival of robot referees in MLB is sure to be an eye-opener.