Story by
How Pirates’ Paul Skenes truly feels about ABS challenge system
- Story by
- How Pirates’ Paul Skenes truly feels about ABS challenge system
How Pirates' Paul Skenes truly feels about ABS challenge system appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
One of the biggest changes early on in the 2026 MLB season has been the ability of batters, pitchers, and catchers to use challenges on umpire ball-strike calls at the plate via the ABS challenge system . While some baseball purists have derided the new rule for slowing down the game, others have been more receptive to the new system, which uses technology to accurately assess whether or not the call the umpire initially made was in fact the correct one.
Advertisement
Recently, star Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher and former number one overall draft pick Paul Skenes weighed in on the debate regarding the ABC system.
" It's pretty cool. I don't think it's been super one-sided where the pitchers are getting a lot more than the hitters. It feels right so far," said Skenes, per ESPN.
"The strike zone is the strike zone. A tenth of an inch inside the zone is still a strike. I wouldn't change anything," he added.
The system works so that a correct challenge will reward the team by giving them an additional challenge to use later in the game, while an unsuccessful challenge will yield the opposite result.
Advertisement
Some fans are wondering why, if the technology exists to automatically call balls and strikes correctly, the MLB still has human umpires behind the plate and not robots, and as of yet, there isn't a great argument against it that doesn't rely on baseball nostalgia or ballpark aesthetics.
For now, however, fans and players will have to make do with the ABS challenge system, and it seems that the early returns are promising.
Related: Pirates manager gives rough estimate on Jared Jones injury return
