MLB’s new automatic strike zone has created a major unintended consequence for hitters and batters.
The introduction of Major League Baseball’s automatic ball challenge system and strikes was expected to change the sport in 2026. Throughout the game’s history, players and managers have complained about missed calls at home, arguments and disagreements on the field are commonplace.
And suddenly, for the first time, they can do something about it.
If catchers, pitchers, or batters believe the umpire missed a call, they are automatically allowed to challenge it. Two challenges per game, and more if each challenge is successful.
Even in just the first month of the season, this new trend has had a huge impact on the sport. Blocking calls have been overturned, giving hitters another chance, in some cases, resulting in home runs being changed. The pitchers benefited from the catchers getting them out of the innings by turning the ball into a well-timed challenge.
But all that is obvious. ABS, however, also created a completely unexpected change that had a huge impact on both hitters and pitchers.
The scoreboard shows the ABS challenge during the 95th MLB All-Star Game presented by MasterCard at Truist Park in Atlanta, Ga., on July 15, 2025. (Photos by Mary DeCicco/MLB via Getty Images)
The ride is a blast under the new ABS system
With the introduction of the challenges, MLB had to redefine the strike zone to ensure that the tracking system would consistently and accurately measure what is actually a strike or a ball. As such, they created a new version of the zone based on the player’s specific characteristics.
According to the rulebook, “The strike zone shall be a two-sided rectangle set between home plate with the edges of the zone set to the width of home plate (17 inches) and the top and bottom adjusted based on the height of each player (53.5% of the batter’s height at the top and 27% at the bottom).”
How is this different from the previous explanation? Ben Clemens at FanGraphs measured the change, compared to the normal season of 2025, and found that the area decreased at the top of the zone and at the edges of the plate.
Changes in 2025-2026 strike zone as called by umpires, according to Fangraphs research (Fan Photos/Ben Clemens)
How did this play out in practice?
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However, the new strike area and the apparent embarrassment of overturning the call have changed the way umpires call balls and strikes. With a few exceptions, they seem to be getting more aggressive with called strikes, and the data bears it out.
The league-wide walk rate in 2025 was 8.4%, and from 2021 to 2025, it never dropped below 8.2% or above 8.7%. So far in 2026? The rate of travel increases to 9.6%. That is, by far, the highest walk rate of any full season in the last decade.
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Roman Anthony of the Boston Red Sox clicks his helmet with an ABS challenge during a game against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis on April 13, 2026. (Photos by Andrew Ritter/MLB)
In fact, the league redefined the strike zone to make it smaller than the zone used by umpires previously. The referees, afraid of being overturned, or at least, more aware of the new environment and its limitations, have been calling fewer strikes. The batsmen, no doubt instructed by their teams and aware of this new change, have been taking more pitches.
All these factors together lead to more mobility. A 1.2% year-over-year increase is huge for a sport as consistent as baseball.
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Equally interesting, however, is that while his league-wide on-base percentage is .322, the third-highest number since 2016, because hitting has become more difficult due to increased velocity and pitch improvements, the lowest batting averages have been in the past decade.
The scoreboard shows the Automated Ball-Strike Challenge sponsored by T-Mobile during a spring training game between the Detroit Tigers and the Philadelphia Phillies at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla., on March 16, 2026. (Photos by Mark Cunningham/MLB via Getty Images)
So ABS changed the strike area, making it smaller than in previous years. The umpires adjusted, they called fewer strikes, the batters saw it and became more patient in the process, and now the walk is the highest it has been in a decade. Now the question is, can pitchers adjust and throw more strikes, even if it’s dangerous to make too much contact. Just one of the many changes brought about by MLB’s effort to make the game better.
