Stephen Vogt on ABS: How Robot Umpires Will Change Guardians

Major League Baseball plans to roll out the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System in 2026. It’s a bold move—mixing high-tech with a game that’s always leaned on tradition.

Some folks see this as a natural step forward. Others? They’re genuinely worried it could mess with the soul of baseball.

In the Cleveland Guardians’ dugout, opinions are all over the place. There’s a real tug-of-war between excitement and skepticism, echoing the bigger debate across the sport.

What is the ABS Challenge System?

ABS won’t boot human umpires from the field. Instead, it lets teams challenge ball and strike calls during games.

Each club gets two challenges per game. If things go into extra innings, they’ll get another shot.

Pitchers, hitters, or catchers have to call for a challenge. The system spits out a decision instantly using pretty advanced tracking tech.

How It Works

The ABS strike zone is a two-dimensional rectangle hovering over home plate. It’s tailored to each hitter’s height, so Aaron Judge and José Ramírez won’t see the same zone.

12 Hawk-Eye cameras track every pitch with almost absurd accuracy. When someone challenges a call, the system reviews it in real time and spits out the verdict.

It’s supposed to make things more fair and accurate. But, honestly, it’s bound to shake up the way managers and players think about their next move.

Guardians Manager Stephen Vogt: Preparing for Change

Manager Stephen Vogt didn’t sugarcoat it. He said ABS will “change the game forever.”

Still, he figures players will roll with it—just like they did with pitch clocks and shift bans. Vogt kind of shrugs and sees it as just another twist in the game’s story.

Who Stands to Benefit?

Take Steven Kwan. He’s often at the mercy of tight calls on the edges of the plate, and ABS could help him out.

With fewer missed calls, batters might swing with more confidence. Maybe we’ll see offenses get a little boost, especially when the stakes are high late in games.

The Catcher’s Dilemma

This change could totally flip the script for catchers. Guys like Austin Hedges and Bo Naylor have spent years mastering pitch framing, and now that might not matter nearly as much.

If umpires aren’t judging the zone by eye, a big part of a catcher’s defensive magic could just disappear.

Concerns from Behind the Plate

Hedges isn’t thrilled. He says that receiving—making borderline pitches look like strikes—could lose its edge.

For catchers, framing isn’t just a trick. It’s how they steer the game and shield their pitchers. Some worry ABS will turn catching into a robotic job, stripping out the subtlety and art.

Pitchers’ Perspective: Zak Kent’s Cautionary Tale

Righty Zak Kent has already pitched a lot with ABS in the minors. He’s got some thoughts.

He says it forces pitchers to go right after hitters, but that comes at a cost. The psychological chess match—the little games between pitcher and batter—can get lost.

High Stakes and Lost Opportunities

Kent points out that one overturned challenge can flip a whole inning. What should be a strikeout can suddenly become a rally for the other side.

Sometimes ABS gives pitchers a break with a corrected strike call, but Kent thinks it’s more likely to throw off a pitcher’s groove. That old-school back-and-forth? It’s not quite the same.

Implications for MLB’s Future

ABS is just one piece of baseball’s tech overhaul. It’s right up there with replay reviews and all the Statcast data.

It aims for fairness and quick, clear calls. But there’s this nagging sense that something special might get lost along the way.

Potential Outcomes

As MLB heads toward its 2026 rollout, debates will persist over whether high-tech accuracy outweighs tradition.

Potential impacts include:

• Offensive output could rise since the strike zone will be less variable.
• Pitch framing might lose value as a specialized catching skill.
• Pitcher strategies could get more predictable, maybe making games quicker but less nuanced.

The league faces a tricky balance—how do you keep the sport’s human element alive while introducing all this tech?

 
Here is the source article for this story: Guardians Stephen Vogt on ABS: ‘It’s going to change the game forever’