"The zone felt very small" – Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal skeptical of automatic strike zones amid ongoing umpire issues across league
The ongoing conversation about automatic strike zones is one that continues to gain traction given the current state of umpires in the MLB. So far this season, there have been a number of incidents involving various umpires with Angel Hernandez becoming notorious at this point of his career.
"Angel Hernandez said this was a full swing lololo maybe the worst call of his career and that’s saying A LOT" - @KFCBarstool
There is tension in the league between fans, teams, players, and managers against the state of umpires right now. Although it is a very difficult job, one that is based on discretion, a number of disgruntled fans have called for automatic strike zones and robot umpires in an attempt to correct human error.
Although appears to be something that the league is truly considering, Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal is unsure of how well automatic strike zones would go over. The star pitcher recently spoke in an episode of Foul Territory, discussing his experience with the innovation in the minor leagues.
"The zone felt very small" @Tigers ace @TarikSkubal discusses using the automatic strike zone in the minor leagues" - @FoulTerritoryTV
"The zone felt very small," the Tigers pitcher explained. "There was no top of the zone," Skubal continued about his experience using the system in the minor leagues. The ace said how he recorded a strike out on a high pitch, yet upon further review, the system said the pitch would have been "7 balls up."
The implementation of an automatic strike zones has grown and could reach the MLB in the future
It remains to be seen if the usage of automatic strike zones will become commonplace in the MLB, however, the use of the ABS (automated ball-strike system) has continued to expand. The system has been used across the minor leagues, as well as the KBO (Korean Baseball Organization).
"Korean baseball league introduces automated ball-strike system for 2024 as MLB mulls future with robot umps" by @mikeaxisa for @CBSSports: The KBO will adopt the automated ball-strike..." - @NYBBWAA
Although it might not be for some time, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has expressed interest in bringing robot umpires to the majors. There will undoubtedly be a number of obstacles to overcome, it seems that this could one day become a reality.