The Toronto Blue Jays have started their spring training schedule ahead of the 2025 season. Their complex in Dunedin, Florida is one of 13 spring stadiums equipped with the Automated Balls Strikes System, or ABS. That means pitchers, hitters, or catchers can challenge and ball or strike call and have it reviewed. New Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer is not a fan of the robot umps, per a conversation with The Athletic’s Jayson Stark.
“Can we just play baseball?” Scherzer asked. “We’re humans. Can we just be judged by humans? Do we really need to disrupt the game? I think humans are defined by humans.”
Scherzer was the loser on two challenges in his first start with the Blue Jays against the St Louis Cardinals. Lars Nootbaar challenged a called strike that was overturned to a ball in the first inning. And then the veteran pitcher made his attempt in the second inning and lost a challenge.
Despite Scherzer’s protests, MLB is looking to bring robot umps into regular-season play soon. It has been present in minor league games for a few seasons and made its debut in spring training this year. How can Scherzer and the Blue Jays improve their ABS strategy this spring while looking toward the future?
The Blue Jays are a team to watch for the robot umps this spring
There are plenty of reasons to keep an eye on the Blue Jays this spring. Between Vladimir Guerrero Jr’s contract situation and Scherzer looking to bounce back from injury, they are an interesting team. But fans should get acclimated to ABS before it comes to regular-season games and the Blue Jays are one of the teams with the system.
If your favorite team plays in the Grapefruit League, you can check out ABS in various games. The Yankees, Tigers, Pirates, Phillies, Mets, Cardinals, and Marlins all have the system installed. That list is intriguing because of the Yankees’ inclusion, as the Rays will be playing regular season games there this year.
Over in the Cactus League, the five shared facilities all have it installed. The Reds and Guardians, White Sox and Dodgers, Royals and Rangers, and Rockies and Diamondbacks all have ABS. Between those 11 facilities, 60% of spring training games will be played. That gives the players plenty of opportunities to get used to robot umps this spring. Don’t be stunned if the league implements ABS into big-league games next year.
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