{"id":638891,"date":"2026-03-23T13:18:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T13:18:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/638891\/"},"modified":"2026-03-23T13:18:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T13:18:20","slug":"sf-giants-catcher-set-to-challenge-mlbs-new-abs-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/638891\/","title":{"rendered":"SF Giants catcher set to challenge MLB’s new ABS system"},"content":{"rendered":"

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. \u2014 One way or another, the San Francisco Giants<\/a> will be part of history Wednesday. They will either be on the right or wrong side of the first challenged ball-strike call in MLB history.<\/p>\n

If their six-week preview in spring training was any indication, chances are good it will go in their favor. That is, as long as Patrick Bailey is tapping the top of his catcher\u2019s mask.<\/p>\n

\u201cI kind of figured he\u2019d be good at the ABS system,\u201d reliever Ryan Walker said.<\/p>\n

\"SFGiants\u2019 Patrick Bailey has been successful challenging ABS system since it was implemented during spring training. Getty Images<\/p>\n

ABS stands for Automated Ball-Strike<\/a>, and teams will be allowed to challenge at least two pitches per game using the same Hawk-Eye cameras that feed Statcast data to determine if a pitch landed in a strike zone based on a batter\u2019s height.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll never challenge,\u201d Walker said. \u201cI have Patrick Bailey back there.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was some concern when the league considered implementing a fully automated strike zone \u2014 robo umps \u2014 that it would eliminate Bailey\u2019s value as the best in the game at stealing strikes through pitch framing. The compromise has seemingly had the opposite effect.<\/p>\n

Bailey has proven as adept as anyone at knowing which pitches to challenge.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy thing is just don\u2019t get it wrong,\u201d Bailey said. Theoretically, a team could challenge every pitch \u2014 if it kept getting them right. Challenges are only lost when they fail.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kind of a stupid thing to say, but if you get it right, you don\u2019t lose it, so that\u2019s kind of been my philosophy this spring \u2014 just getting it right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seven other catchers were right this spring as often as Bailey. None of them did so in as few attempts as Bailey, who had a 10-for-14 success rate. The only backstop with a higher rate of overturned calls in as many attempts was Freddy Fermin of the Padres, who went 12 for 16.<\/p>\n

With Bailey back there, Giants pitchers<\/a> have largely just been along for the ride.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll probably just leave that up to Patty,\u201d said reliever Spencer Bivens, who attempted one challenge \u2014 and lost. \u201cI think we\u2019re just going to leave it to him,\u201d added starter Landen Roupp, who said Bailey \u201cknows the strike zone like the back of his hand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not to mention, Bailey makes everything look like a strike from 60 feet, 6 inches away.<\/p>\n

\u201cPatrick\u2019s too good back there,\u201d Walker said. \u201cHe fakes me out all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

First-year manager Tony Vitello has been careful not to show his cards as far as the Giants\u2019 philosophy for how to deploy their challenges. Pitchers surveyed by The California Post said there hasn\u2019t been much discussion about ABS strategy. In hitters meetings, Vitello has shown images of the pitch and situation on the scoreboard as examples of when or when not to tap.<\/p>\n

Ideally, he said, the Giants would reserve at least one<\/a> for the late innings.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it affects the game in a lot of ways,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cI\u2019ll leave it at that.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are loads of possible wrinkles that will only reveal themselves as teams and players adjust to the new system. Bailey could, in theory, use his pitch-framing prowess to trick a batter into an errant challenge. Vitello noted that during one spring game, the biggest cheers from the home fans came when the Giants\u2019 opponents exhausted their two challenges.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe challenge system, it\u2019s interesting, there\u2019s some strategy behind it,\u201d veteran starter Robbie Ray said. The biggest challenge for Ray, who attacks the top of the zone with his fastball, is adjusting to a strike zone that changes batter-to-batter.<\/p>\n

\"ABSThere are loads of possible wrinkles that will reveal themselves as teams and players adjust to the new ABS system.<\/p>\n

He theorized that teams could even get creative with their lineup construction, alternating heights instead of handedness to keep pitchers and catchers on their toes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe zone kind of changes every single batter,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s why I think relying on Patty or whoever\u2019s catching back there is more of the route that you would go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Daniel Susac, a Rule 5 pick who looks like he\u2019ll be the other catcher on the Giants\u2019 roster<\/a>, went 4 for 8 on challenges this spring. He had all last season to adjust to the system, playing in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League where it was being tested.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI think the biggest learning part is knowing how to not be emotional with it,\u201d he said. \u201cJust because you struck out on a pitch doesn\u2019t mean you should challenge it.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easier to take a more clinical approach when it doesn\u2019t affect your on-base percentage or ERA. That\u2019s one reason catchers issued 96% of the 956 challenges on defense, and probably why they had a 59% success rate, opposed to 45% from batters.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, we have the best view of anybody,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cI\u2019d say even more so than the umpire. So I think catchers should be pretty good at it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Forget a game of inches. Some challenges this spring have been determined by as little as a 10th of an inch.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re pretty blessed to have him at that spot,\u201d Vitello said of Bailey, a two-time Gold Glove winner. \u201cI think, if anything, it will accentuate the type of player he is.\u201d<\/p>\n

The process takes seconds. Either the batter, catcher or pitcher touches the top of his head to initiate a challenge. An animation appears on the scoreboard showing the location of the pitch. The home plate umpire announces the result over the stadium loudspeakers.<\/p>\n

It will be novel for fans experiencing it for the first time<\/a>, but challenges have become a routine part of every game just since the system went online at the start of spring training.<\/p>\n

Across 414 exhibitions this spring, there were an average of 4.3 challenges per game.<\/p>\n

Of his aptitude so far during spring, Bailey chuckled, \u201cThere\u2019s no value right now.\u201d But beginning Wednesday at Oracle Park, the challenges will count for real.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kind of a cool deal,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t sure how I felt about it. I think the strike zone is small. I think everybody agrees on that. But it adds a new exciting part of the game. And there\u2019s some strategy involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

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