Throughout the 2025 season, umpires around Major League Baseball have made calls that upset fans, players, and managers. Now, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred is preparing to pitch a new idea. He wants the automatic ball-strike challenge system to be implemented in the major leagues. The change would impact how teams approach their challenges. Teams have had the power to challenge plays since 2008, but this is a significant evolution for MLB.

MLB uses the minor leagues and spring training to experiment with new rules. Over the past few seasons, the league introduced a runner on second base in 2020 and the pitch clock in 2023, as well as bigger bases.

All of these changes are put through their paces in the minor leagues before Manfred brought them to the big leagues. This newest change has undergone the same steps, leaving Manfred in a place where he feels good about introducing it to MLB, according to New York Times reporter Ken Rosenthal.

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In some minor leagues around the country, they use ABS systems to umpire full games. Manfred likely won't go that far with his new inclusion in MLB. However, introducing it at the highest level opens the door to a lot of criticism from MLB players and fans.

Some former and current players have already voiced their opinion on the ABS system and challenges. Trea Turner had some fun with Max Scherzer, immediately challenging the MLB ABS system against him in spring training. While the new rule has its supporters, there are some older players who believe that it hurts the game, rendering umpires less useless.

Manfred has his work cut out for him when it comes to selling the ABS system. However, he believes that he can convince owners and players to try it out. Leagues around the sports world continue to evolve and implement technology. In MLB, the big change this season was torpedo bats.

In the future, it could be the ABS system that changes the game for MLB teams in the future.