Major League Baseball transformed two years ago with the highly successful introduction of the pitch clock. The league’s efforts with an automated ball-strike (ABS) system could ultimately become just as impactful. 

Spring training tests are underway in both Arizona and Florida on the ABS system, which electronically monitors the location of each pitch. Instead of using the technology, colloquially known as “robot umpires,” to call each pitch, though, it will instead be used as a basis to challenge the calls made by human umpires. 

The ABS system will be used in MLB regular-season games no sooner than next year, but the challenge system will be used in the 2025 season at the Triple-A level of the minor leagues. Challenges have taken roughly 17 seconds on average to complete, not dissimilar to technology-aided line call reviews in tennis. Teams have the ability to challenge two calls per game, but they retain those challenges if they are successful. 

The development is the latest in a wave of significant change in MLB in recent years that beyond the pitch clock has also included universal designated hitters, ghost runners, and limits on mound visits, among others.

“Like any institution, we’re going to need to continue to change going forward,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said last week. 

Larger Impacts

The pitch clock, along with larger bases and a ban on defensive shifts, paved the way for shorter game times, more on-field action, and crucially, better attendance in both 2023 and 2024—with expectations for a further lift at the gate this season. 

It remains to be seen whether ABS will be as much of a singular difference-maker in MLB’s business. There is a wide array of sizable potential impacts, though, including changes in how both umpires and catchers are evaluated and compensated, as well as the possibility of defusing situations that, in the past, have led to heated arguments and ejections. The use of a challenge system, however, is also aimed at retaining human elements of the game, such as pitch framing by catchers.

There is also a large-scale change potentially looming, however, with MLB game broadcasts, as the advent of ABS could do away with virtual strike zones shown on TV.

“The strike-zone box that we display on broadcasts and our app probably is inconsistent with the way we currently do it with the challenge system,” MLB EVP for baseball operations Morgan Sword said. “You take a lot of drama and excitement out of it if the fan can see up front that the pitch was a strike. It sort of obviates the need for the challenge.”

As a result, the league is also experimenting with several alternatives for TV to complement the on-field ABS application.

More than three weeks have passed since the blockbuster trade that sent Luka Dončić to the Lakers from the Mavericks, and the new-look teams will face off for the first time Tuesday.

Los Angeles hosts Dallas at 10 p.m. ET, a game that will air on TNT. Unlike Dončić’s Lakers debut against the Jazz on Feb. 10—and the Feb. 8 game initially believed to be his debut—the Mavericks game was already scheduled for national TV before the trade and does not need to be flexed in.

Despite the late start time—and the fact that Anthony Davis, the key piece Dallas acquired from the Lakers in the trade, is out due to an injury he sustained in his Mavericks debut—the game is poised to be one of TNT’s most-watched contests of the season. Dončić’s debut against Utah, which had a 10 p.m. ET start time on ESPN, drew 2 million viewers, the network’s second-most-watched game this year, excluding ABC simulcasts.

The game will also feature LeBron James, still one of the NBA’s most-watched athletes, facing off against Kyrie Irving, his star running mate in 2016 when the duo led the Cavaliers to an NBA title.

As for TNT, its most-watched games of the year were on the NBA’s opening night (Knicks-Celtics, 3 million; Timberwolves-Lakers, 2.9 million) back on Oct. 22. 

Its next-largest draws were games with a storyline entering the night: 2.1 million viewers on Nov. 12 for Mavericks guard Klay Thompson’s first game against the Warriors, his former team, and 1.9 million when the 15–0 Cavaliers battled the defending champion Celtics.

The NBA’s viewership, which is down 5% compared to last year, has been a subject of conversation this season, in part due to double-digit declines to start the year. The league’s recent recovery is due to scheduling more Christmas games on ABC. But viewership has waned for cable-exclusive games, whether on TNT or ESPN, as Americans continue to cut the cord. TNT viewership is down 11% this year.

Another major U.S. sports league is looking to emulate some of the massive draft success enjoyed by the NFL. 

The NHL has set plans to have commissioner Gary Bettman read the names of first-round selections at the 2025 draft, set for June 27–28 in Los Angeles. Traditionally, NHL teams have announced their own draft picks, with Bettman operating in more of a master-of-ceremonies role. The shift, however, also arrives in tandem with the league’s move to a decentralized format in which teams will participate virtually from their home markets—just as NFL and NBA teams normally do for their drafts. 

For years, Bettman has been a magnet for fan boos at public events, such as the awarding of the Stanley Cup to the league champion. The NHL, however, is looking to place even more prominence on its draft following last year’s event held at the Sphere in Las Vegas. 

“The clubs asked for this,” Bettman said while attending a Kings game Saturday against the Utah Hockey Club. “I wasn’t looking for any more exposure. I have more than enough. But this is what the clubs told us they wanted, and we’re going to try it. And we’ll see after this year whether or not everybody likes it better.”

Selection Importance

The NHL’s effort bears some similarity to what MLB has done in recent years by holding its draft in conjunction with the league’s All-Star Game and raising production levels both on-site and on television. Baseball and hockey have the challenge of their prospects typically requiring some preparation in the minors before reaching major leagues. 

The accelerating success of the NFL Draft, however, shows the growing fan appetite for these events—particularly after that league drew a record 775,000 people last year to downtown Detroit and an average of 12.1 million more on TV for the first round.

“The prospects and our fans can expect a first-rate event with a new look and creative approach,” said NHL president of events and content Steve Mayer.