The Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System is coming to Major League Baseball in 2026. After years of speculation about "robot umpires" displacing their human counterparts and a series of trial runs in Spring Training and the minor leagues, MLB has decided to implement the ABS system during the regular season this year.
However, fans of the human element of baseball, more specifically umpiring, need not worry, as the robot overlords aren't completely replacing home plate umpires just yet. Rather, each team simply has two opportunities to challenge a ball or strike call throughout the game, maintaining their challenges so long as they are successful.