New Umpire Challenge System is Here

And then I guess we could circle up on Yankees beard policy a little bit, a little more spring training around the horn for you. Let's start with the ABS system. If some of you have no idea what I'm talking about, automated balls and strikes, I'll be honest, till this morning, I didn't know what it's did for. Makes sense, makes sense. And in spring training they are messing around slash using the system that they have now used at Double Lane

A for the last two years. Early results seem positive. Actually, I guess I don't know if there's any results that are negative. You got anything, AJ No, A fierce head shake. No. Because we've had the technology for a while I think that's where a lot of people jump to, and I actually think the system that they're using is the right format. There'll be tweaks along the way. Sure you could say that with anything, but I like where they are at. So where we are at. Each team gets two that's

actually a lie. I'm going to start over. Each team essentially gets two wrong answers, so you get two challenges, but if you get it right, you don't get penalized. So in theory you could have unlimited which there will be a point this season that an umpire has a really bad day and we all get to see that live, so that'll be fun. But yeah, you get two of them,

and if you get them wrong, you lose them. So the thought process behind that is I think when MLB or baseball in general came to the table and was like, where do we go with this, because if you are a tennis person, this is the system that they've used in tennis for a long time, and it's actually it's

kind of the coolest thing about tennis right now. Don't need to give you my full tennis rant, but in a big tennis moment, when they challenge it and it goes to the big screen, the crowd starts clapping, and then it cuts down and you find out what happened. It's kind of sick. They've had that for a while now, very similar the same technology that they'll be using for the MLB strikes on, so we'll get a little bit of that effect. It's going to be fun to see

which home stadium's kicking a gear. Are they going to do legging? Oh? Will they do a class? I don't know. That first one was way too spooky. They're not going to do that. Oh that's Joe's McFly effect. So that'll be fun. But yeah, I think you see it in the NBA a lot that there's a ton of stoppages and it's affected the game. It's affected the quality of the game. It's affected the watching experience that I think baseball.

If you were every pitch turning and looking to see if it was a ball or a strike, something feels off about that. So and umpires are part of the game. A little inside John Boy Media. If you go to most of our baseball channels and search, like most viewed videos most of them are talking are tied to umpires. It's kind of insane. It frustrates me a little bit

as like a sports loser. But people love the umpires, and it's a conversation we've talked about a little bit because Joe West is out, Angel Hernandez like a lot of the guys that were kind of stars of the game, guys that if you knew them once, you knew them for a long time because they were umpires for thirty plus years, where baseball players, you know, we get stuck on the pool holeses and the studs that stick around for twenty but most guys are there for three. So umpires,

a good ump has some staying power. Anyways, when they came to it, they were like, all right, so are we just getting rid of umps? What are we doing? They're like, no, let's have the umpires called the game. Let's do this two challenge rule. Let's see what happens. And the reason why it's limited is because they don't want. Okay, if it's a two to one count four nothing game in the fifth inning and there's a borderline pitch, we

can't just be challenging each one of that. I know there's something that sounds dumb about that, because it's like, well, let's get the call right, and if we have the technology, huh, but that's too far, Like sports are not meant for that. And that's the other fun part of the challenge system that it ties back to the pitcher. The hitter and the catcher are the only three people that can challenge the call and it has to happen instantaneously. So there's

been a few highlights early on in spring training. You know, you'll see the catcher the hitter usually tap the top of their head. The ump will do the same thing. We get the replay review, they zoom in on it, which that's exciting sometimes, and then you get the call. So it won't be a part of Major League Baseball this year, I believe. I don't think it's official, but from everything they've done rules wise, it should be official next year in Major League Baseball, and I think you

should be excited for it. I will say the early return on it, when this had been dreamt up years go, it was, how are pitcher's gonna manipulate this? Are pictures gonna snap off curveballs that just nick the outside outside corner of the zone and then they end up in the dirt? Are they gonna flip? We'll keep it all curveballs for now? Are they gonna flip high curve balls that come down at the last second that for years? Could they clip like the back of the strike zone

even though they might have come across your chest? This way very interesting on talking baseball with myself and Trevor figuring out the geometry? Is that geometry if a ball's moving this fast and then it's coming down like this triggonometry, You have no clue. If you're listening, you might have a clue. And let me know. Engineering, what do they do? Physics? Physics feels good, Physics feels great. The earlier returned seemed to be that the pitchers aren't going to be able

to cook the books that much. Let's see what happens and let's see the evolution of it, like we had to do with a lot of changes in baseball, which I know there's a lot to be discussed with. Just saw Dan Rourke and he winked at me. So cool with baseball. Baseball's the old sport, Baseball's dying. All these things we read so often. Yet somehow, some way we were able to build a company out of young people

liking baseball. So that's something. And when we're talking significant rule changes about baseball leading the way, whether you want to do pitch clock or infield shifts, you know football. I mean, I guess they had the new kickoff rule player safety stuff, but I don't know, not like that significant of a change to the game. NBA. There's again, these sports are always every sport's always adding something, but these are game changing things by baseball and almost every one,

from pitchclock to shifting the base running. I think everything has been received with baseball fans at this point with open arms. I will admit I talked about the pitch clock on this show and I was nervous at first. It felt a little quick for me. My thing was, okay, when it comes down to a big postseason moment and things like that, are we gonna feel it by not feeling it? Like those used to be the moments where baseball won because it'd be a three to two count,

bases loaded eighth inning of the playoffs. The pitcher would get the ball back and do a lap around the mound, maybe the catcher would come out, and these were like the sick baseball moments. What's he gonna throw? Is the hitter ready? Do you think he's gonna throw a strike? Is he gonna throw a ball? That led to kind

of the beautiful breathing conversation of baseball. I when the pitch clock first started happening, wasn't having a blast because I was like, damn, these games are kind of flying by. There was a couple seven pm starts that I would get home, you know, cook up some dinner, seven pm. You know, sit down, eat, I'm watching the game. I'm cooking, I'm eating. I'm really grooving, baby, you know, seven thirty five, look up, cleaning the plate from dinner. It was the

top of the fourth inning. Now, a couple things happened. That was the worst Yankee team in thirty years, it turned out, and they couldn't hit, so there was a lot of very quick innings. So I was like, Okay, I'm really not liking this. The Yankee stink. And that's kind of how opinions are supposed to work. Wait, I'm watching the team I like, and they're really bad now and there's this new rule. I don't love this. Come to find out, it was because the Yankees were bad.

I didn't like that. And what the hitters have countered back with is they use their times. Each hitter gets a time out, and now you see it traditionally if they go down two to one, two they're going to use their time. They're going to reset, which that has

kind of made the bets breathe a little more. It kind of brought the baseball conversation back that the pitchclock had been fantastic for just cutting out the massive gaps of time that were ridiculous between throwovers to first just holding the ball forever, stepping off the rubb or whatever it was. That the pitch clock has been awesome for that that that's been a resounding win for baseball. The shifts, I want them to turn the knob up a little more.

Teams are shifting. If you go look at where your second basement or your short stop is starting. For a lot of whatever they're facing, righty or lefty, teams are still shifting. It's I think it's fine and I can be okay with it. I know personally the Yankees try to game the system a little bit. Uh. Anthony Volpi,

the gold Glove shortstop breakout year inbound. Check out my article that for Volpi, if there is a big pull lefty, he will take his hop as the pitch is coming and then start heading past second base, which, hey, he's gotten to a couple balls over there on lefty hitters, which you've gamed the system perfectly. That's what we're always looking for. I don't know if there's a solution that people have talked about making like a triangle past the

bag that you can't cross, that I'm interested. If not, I still think we're in a good spot. I've been I've been loud, He says, I've been loud about it. The outfield shifts, to me are still wild. I think we've taken away a lot of the outfield defensive highlights via the ship or outfielders just play so deep. Now doubles used to happen, and then analytics was like, hey, why don't you play at the wall? No doubles defense

used to be a thing. Now that's what everyone plays, because everyone figured out a single, giving up a single is better than giving up a double. Analytics numbers, what math is that algebra two is better than one? Audio Jack said, I can't believe you keep asking me these math questions. That being said that, it I used to

be the best play in baseball. A ball in the gap or a ball off the wall, when that outfielder would turn and fire a second and if you didn't know about the base runner speed, you'd be like, Okay, do we got something here? Does the outfielder have a good arm? And I just think tracking down balls in the gap. I think that's some of the most beautiful plays. That's some of the most I don't know the result play in baseball, and I think that's a good thing. I think when a ball is hitting the gap and

you're like, oh, but when you got the whole outfield shifted. Anyways, going back to abs automated balls and strikes, nailed it. The strategy is going to be the most fun part for me because now having talked about this weekly dumb talking baseball, here in a lot of strategy strategies and strong opinions. John Boy, Trevor Pluf. That's all you're gonna get out of those guys. Okay, let's say I use this example before Noe Jake find it find a different team.

Let's say, where are the Seattle Mariners always trying to get my Mariners in the mix? You know, there's some questions about the depths of their lineup. I'm sure some guys are gonna break out this year. Okay, so you're the Mariners. You've got Julio cal Rally, let's see who else busts out for them. But let's say those are their two guys. Do you save your two challenges for them? Like these are the two guys that might do a

ton of impact or damage for you. Do you make it so like, hey, cal or Julio, you guys have full rain. We need your at bats to count or I don't know, that's a scary message to tell a team that the rest of your at bats aren't valuable. I don't see that really happening. I think the resounding answer is situational if you have because we see it in a baseball game. There's two or three moments that

dictate almost every game. Bases loaded, one out in the third, Okay, if the guy turns on one one, it's for nothing. If you get the double play ball, it's zero zero. So I think in those significant moments, and I wonder, you know, Jim started going deep into the analytics of you know, having the moments. Is there an analytics guy or a bench coach that says, like, hey, this at bat is a big one. If you need to challenge it,

you go. Are they going to leave it to players because with only the hitter, pitcher and catcher being able to challenge, Hey, I think pitchers need to be out. I think if I was managing a team, I would politely tell my pitcher, I'm sorry, you are passionate and locked in this game. You think every ball that is near the plate is a strike that you're kind of out in the nicest way, And I wouldn't take that as a bad thing if I was a pitcher, to

be honest, Like, you gotta trust your catcher. Your catcher knows his own better than anyone. They're right there. Most of the MLB managers, former catchers leave it with the catcher.

And again, is that situational. I think that's gonna be interesting to side from the pitcher catcher side of things, because if you do get that one wrong, I mean we've seen it in NFL with challenge systems and things like that, like you start operating differently, and then can you imagine there's going to be a manager this year that And it's crazy that it's gonna fall on the managers because this is all players. But that's why managers

have to set up the system. Like there's going to be a team that loses their two challenges, that has an awful call in the ninth inning, and then we're going to talk about that on Waken Jake Subscribe, Talking Baseball, every other channel in Form Baseball Today, Chris Rose is going to be so hot about it, My god. That Yeah, it's gonna be funny to see all the new parts of this happen. Moments get elevated, Yeah, elevated by everyone as they show up in the in the light for

the first time. Can you imagine the first time, Like there's gonna be a pitcher that thinks he struck someone out to win the game, they review it, it gets overturned, it's a ball the other team hits like a game winning home run. Like, we're gonna have some pretty wild moments that come from this, and I think you can go on a lot of I do want to talk about the dimensions a little bit because we you know, as I've already challenged audio Jack with math three times,

let's make it four. Uh, if you're wondering how they're measuring this, so they're getting players' heights, which you know anything about? Me fascinated And we don't know the answer yet. We were told that they took the player heights. Did they have shoes on? I don't know. Was it the team measuring them? Did the players get to say their height? Did the league? Does ABS have a brand of people that go out and measure humans? We don't know that yet. I told Trev I want to know he still has

enough friends in the league. I told him to go ask Matt Chapman. Okay, did someone measure you at spring training? Cleats your team other? Because I believe it's fifty seven Okay, it's fifty three and a half percent of the player's height. We had the ruler out before Jimmy made a video and then it's the bottom of the zone starts at

twenty seven percent of the player's height. So John measured this out and demonstrated, and it was essentially it was the knees with a bent batting stance, not completely bent, but like relaxed. If you were stepping up to the plate and you were benting the knees a little bit,

it was up to the knees. The part that I found the most interesting is that the height went to the belt and that was like the belt in a batting stance, which if you think about it, and I think the letter of the law, going back old umpire book is supposed to be the letters. We know that baseball hasn't been that for a long time. But I think from the reviews I've seen, I saw Jazz Chisholm

Challenge one, we watched a few on Talking Baseball. From the reviews I've seen, I think the high strike is going to be the popular conversation this year because I think where that line stops, there's a lot of pitches that would have just been called strikes and everyone would go okay that. I think the new HEIGHTE metric is going to change that that. I think it's gonna be advantageous for hitters to start, which I think, circling back on this conversation of years of are they going to

go full automated strikes? Owner what are they gonna do? I currently have this as good news for the hitters, and yeah, it's gonna be fun to see how each team implements it, Like the Dodgers are fun for a lot of reason, Like I think Dave Roberts is just gonna be like Freddie Freeman, Mookie Showhy, your guys call man. You guys know, but also know that you're responsible for the rest of this team. That I wonder our player

is gonna lose privileges throughout the season? Is there gonna be is something going to pop up in June and it's like, well, Jack Peterson's zero for five, so he's just lost his privilege. And then there's probably gonna be some players that are absolute sick goes about it that can significantly change their season. A three to two pitch off the plate gets called a strike three and you challenge that and it's a walk that's big, that rolls over into the next game. Like I think this is

gonna be big for hitters. The one thing that I do think is going to be the pitchers winning all this. And there was one of these, uh called over this weekend's games. UH when pitchers when pitchers miss the spot and they reach back but it's still over the plate, But umps for years haven't called that a strike. Like you're on the outside corner, the pitch is a fastball on the inside corner, But all the umpire seasons you

do that for those on the YouTube. I reached across my body and go check out the YouTube and subscribe that pitchers are gonna get at those calls, which hitters for years have been able to do the like, well he missed a spot, Like whatever, man, that's gonna be the biggest one for pitchers. But I wonder, I mean, now I'm really daydreaming a little bit. But like, Okay, let's say, if you're facing a team that's not necessarily stealing signs, But what if you know, when the catcher

sets up, maybe they're pointing inside or outside. Could you have the catcher set up outside and throw a pitch inside? Is that crazy? I don't know. I don't know. I don't think you'll see teams take it that far yet. But with any new rule, you're always going to see something new. You're gonna see teams try to take advantage of this to the umpteenth degree. I'm excited to see what managers come out and say their strategy. What managers don't come out and say their strategy. But we're able

to figure it out. And I don't know. I think it's I think with technology and sports for the past few years and many years coming up it's how do we integrate this the right way? Like Baseball still doesn't know how to do their NERD broadcast right because they don't know what numbers people really care about, even just like across other sports, what does what helps the fan watching experience go to the next level? And I think a lot of the data doesn't do too too much

for you. I know, in baseball, I wish they started becoming more public with the catch percentage numbers. I always thought those were cool, like, oh, that ball gets caught fifteen percent of the time, that's a great catch. There's other diving catches they get caught ninety five percent of the time, And you're like, I don't know. That was a little sus interested in that and interested to see how teams take advantage of this. I think I forgot where I was going with that last part for a

little bit. But that's life. Speaking of Yankees are playing that after losses? Now good? And yeah, I'll yankee it for a little bit because on this show haven't talked about losing the shaving policy. I know we're not all Yankee fans here, So if you don't care, okay, because that's not far too far from where I land. At this point, I thought I see every side of the argument here. I thought it was kind of cool. Hey,

we're the Yankees, this is what we do. You want to play for us, shave your face, let's go again. I'm coming from this from the baby face perspective, although I do have a nice little pimple today that I wish I had a beard cover up, so I'm just trying to grow that real fast. I understand the other side of it that the whole thing's pretty old. There's been guys that have pushed the different Yankee rules on it because you could have a mustache, which I mean

allowing that as even suss in itself. But and I think Goose gossages like he fu Man chewed for a little bit, but he was really good, so nobody really said anything. And yeah, Devin Williams is getting it like all the credit for this, which I don't know if that's good or bad. This had been talked about in Yankee circles for a while now it kind of blew

up again when Devin Williams came over and shaved. He got roasted, which I mean, maybe this is me being a beard those guy I didn't think it was that bad. I think he leaned a little better with the beard. He'd never pitch an MLB inning without a beard. It's kind of nuts that, Yeah, when you're trading for a guy to be your closer on a one year deal, would hate to look back in May and be like,

he's miserable without his beard. Man. I do truly think I've half jokingly talked about it on Talking Yanks and here I think there's guys that like having a beard. You like having a beard. Audio Jack BBD likes having a beard. That one of the earliest Talking Yanks running jokes. Whenever I feel like it was whenever we do voicemails or reach out for questions, and it would just be funny. We'd get a lot of the same so like we'd get favorite player over and over and we'd be like, Okay,

Bernie was my favorite. I don't you want to hear me talk about it more like our Our couple thousand listeners at the time had heard that speech many times. The other one was people would ask about the beard policy and me and Jimmy wouldn't yim and yammer not words about it. You know, if I ever needed to give Jim a little a little thumb to the belly. I'd be like, you know, Jim queen shaven Yankees, Like come on, my guy, Like Yankee signed you to play

baseball tomorrow, Like let's go. You're shaving that thing. And Jimmy was like, Yeah, if I was a baseball player, I'd have no problem with it because I'd be in shape and don't care about my beard. I was like, well, okay, an interesting way to look at it, appreciate it, we get our chuckle, we move on. I think if you're a beard guy, especially in today's society, you're a beard guy. Man, you get comfy with it. How long have you had a beard? Now? Audio chack uh kind of goes in cycles.

Do you mean just this beard? Or like, how long have I been growing a beard? How long has a beard been a go to of your your recipe? Uh? Probably since about halfway through twenty twenty? Okay, how old were you? I was twenty three? Happy birthday, Jess's birthday today, Happy birthday, Jess. Actually, okay, so you're twenty three years old. That's a time that a lot of top prospects get called up to the MLB. Other guys are hoping twenty five,

twenty six, whatever you know, I don't. My college roommate Nick Proach shout out the male man. He'd been a beard. He's had a beard essentially since he was a sophomore in high school. So hey, there's one side of it. It's look good, play good, feel good that I think a few guys were missing that, and I just think there's also that's the positive side. The negative side is like, if you think you don't look good with a beard and now you're playing pro sports, that's a bad time.

I think Joey Gallo is beard guy. I don't think it would have saved him. I think he was in it pretty deep. Alex Vdugo, I don't know. I don't know. It was interesting just going through failed left fielders Josh Donaldson. I'm not gonna go through everyone that didn't play well without their beard. Labor Torres goes nuts this year. I think for me, the news broke. I was on my way to the warehouse. How about that, I was in the back of an Uber. Uber driver hated me. I

have no idea what happened. He such disdain for me, Like I miss part of the transaction. So I'm in the which, by the way, it's only like a seven minute uber from the train station to the warehouse. But I get in there see the news and I'm like all right, Well for me, it was a shrug realization and then I was like, wait, this is over, Like that's it. Like once that memos drop, like they're not gonna go back and take away the policy, my god, or revamp it. It is gonna see. It's gonna be

funny to see what Yankees push it. How big can a beard get a well maintained beard. That's gonna be interesting to see. And yeah, it was funny to see some of the cause there was a few of my Red Sox fans were like, oh, they finally got rid of it. This was like the worst, the worst rule in sports. And I was like, okay, that's a little dramatic, felt a little red sock. I think there was other fans of teams that were like, I kind of liked it.

Now you're playing the Yankees. They were clean shave, like that was it, No questions asked, Hey, the big thing Yankee fans care. This is our little secret. We like to win. That's what we were told the whole brand was like the shaving faces thing that came up, like eighth it is like win, It's like, okay, we go out and get the best players. That's good. Short Porch, I don know, Babe Ruth played here. Jeter was hot. Then you start getting to the beard policy. I guess

that I don't know. It's it's funny that this is probably I say, this is probably the last time I'll ever talk about it, and then someone will come out with like a gross beard or something. Uh. The thing I still don't have resolution on, and it'll be interesting to see if we ever get there. You know, the Yankees you can't have long hair. Garrett Cole pushed the limits a couple times, and when I say push the limits, like he had a little bit of flow coming out back.

The one that had me out of sorts was the Yankees were supposed to trade for The Yankees were supposed to be in the business for Luis Castillo, and Luis Castillo has beautiful dreads that for me, the beard policy was like, I don't know, guys, a lot of people shave for work whatever, blah blah blah. I don't actually care. I'm I'm glad it's gone. If the Yankees ever come up a situation like that, it starts getting a little crazy again. Make a guy shave his dread like that.

For me, that's a thousand times worse than shaving a beard, right, Like, that's years and years and years. And I suppose we'll cross that bridge when we get there. So yeah, it's uh, it's done, and that's a good thing. I'm trying to see what else I got for you guys. I mean, it's, uh, the first week in a spring training you know, there's some nice stuff. Guys hit guys hit home. Alex Bragman homard for the Red Sox, happy for him, Juan so toa homeward for the Mets, happy for him. Other than that,

I mean, there's not too much to chew on. I did watch High Song Kim the new Dodger second basement play a little bit. He looks good. That's my scouting report on that. Otherwise, we're in a little bit of a baseball hole. So we will have tearless coming up with Jolly on Wednesday. Get excited for that. That's what the people like. And then yeah, the other sports are

kind of chillin too. That we're finding. We're watching the other leagues try to find stuff in this window, the golf league, how about hockey and the Four nations thing? That was pretty sick last week except how it ended. So I think it's a high and tight one today. We'll get BBD healthy, we'll get myself healthy, we'll get Jolly healthy, and we'll be back as we're I think it's thirty days till opening day. How do you like that?

A short month? February? People forget Nobody forgot. All right, guys, you're the best. Thank you to Audio Jack for filling in in this show. I think still brought to you by Dan Patrick, so shout out t unkle Dan. Make sure you go check him out. We'll see you next time.