CLEVELAND, Ohio - Major League Baseball in 2026 will introduce a system that won’t just change how games are called – it also will fundamentally transform how umpires are evaluated, discussed, and potentially even assigned to games.

The announcement of an automated ball-strike challenge system for 2026 represents a shift in baseball’s approach to umpiring.

On the latest Terry’s Talkin’ podcast , cleveland.com columnist Terry Pluto said he’s a fan of the new system and what it will do.

“Absolutely. Why not?” Pluto said. “It’s not like it’s going to get in the way of the game. And then that way it’ll be very interesting if this has an impact on umpiring, because they’ll start having numbers of how many of these guys are getting overturned.”

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