Major League Baseball’s 11-man competition committee approved the use of the automated ball/strike system (ABS) on Tuesday. Robot umpires will be used for the entire 2026 season .

An umpire still will call balls and strikes from behind home plate, but teams can appeal, and the automated system will determine the call.

The technology has been used in Minor League Baseball since 2019 with the 2025 season marking the second straight year every minor league park used robot umps .

The system also was used during the All-Star Game in July and at spring training.

“It’s great, I guess, but we haven’t had too much experience with it,” manager Alex Cora said Tuesday before Boston’s game against the Blue Jays. “In spring training, we didn’t play too many games and so we don’t have a feel

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