WooSox prepare for robotic umpire system, which is coming soon to Polar Park

BOSTON — As a longtime and influential executive, Larry Lucchino is privy to information and ideas from Major League Baseball.

So it shouldn’t have been a surprise when the WooSox principal owner predicted last year baseball would soon implement an automated strike zone. Well, the era of the robotic umpire has arrived.

MLB hasn’t officially announced it, but all 30 Triple-A clubs are preparing for the Automatic Balls and Strikes system to be operational in 2023. The plan is for the robo umpire to call half the games, while a traditional umpire will call the other half. Either way, a person will still stand behind the plate calling the game, whether on his own, or receiving a signal from an MLB personnel in the press box.

The idea of an automated strike zone has been discussed for years, but now its arrival at the major league level isn’t too far off.

“There will always be a role for umpires in the game, but the balls and strikes are something that can be measured, so therefore let technology do it,” Lucchino said last year.

There will be certain situations when an umpire could overrule a computer’s call. For example: If a ball bounces in front of the plate, but the automated system picks it up as a strike after it ricochets through the strike zone. The umpire also will call other plays on the field.

Red Sox director of player development Brian Abraham explained the organization has told its pitchers and catchers to focus on their strengths no matter who, or what, is deciding balls and strikes.

“Our pitchers attack the zone, and our catchers receive really well from the ground up,” he said. “It doesn’t change our process. There are changes in this game on a daily, weekly, yearly basis, and our players adjust to them accordingly.”

The practice of framing, or pulling pitches has become an art form for catchers. Red Sox Hall of Famer Rich Gedman once explained that catchers would scout and study the umpiring crew for each series in order to learn each one’s tendencies and strike calling behind the plate.

“The one beautiful thing about the game of baseball is there’s always been a human element to it,” Gedman said. “Therefore, it was important the relationship you established with the home plate umpire, or the umpiring crew in general.”

Even though Gedman is a baseball traditionalist, the current hitting coach for the Worcester Red Sox understands changes occur every game and every season, so everyone involved needs to adjust. As far as the implementation of the robo umpire, Gedman said he’s fine with it.

“The weird part now is you just get mad at a machine,” he said with a smile. “Athletes are really good at adapting, and good players are going to figure it out. I’m assuming just like anything else if (the robo umpires) are not calibrated daily, or calibrated correctly, somebody will say something about it.”

Gedman is also interested in the consistency of the robo umpires and the strike zone.

“If it’s consistent, then no one will have any trouble with it,” he said.

Part of the new system is managers will be allowed three challenges during a game. If they’re correct, they don’t lose a challenge.

“I’m not sure three is enough, just because it’s an emotional game, and now all of a sudden a machine is going to dictate if it’s a ball or a strike,” Gedman explained.

If the robo umpire becomes a permanent part of Major League Baseball one day, which it appears to be the case, the catcher position will change.

Throughout the Red Sox organization, catchers at each level work on receiving and pulling pitches almost on a daily basis. Even though the robo umpire will be used at Triple A this season, the Red Sox won’t change their catching development system.

“You’re going to have to have process, an idea of what we want out of our catchers, they way they receive and do things,” Abraham said. “Whether it’s a robo ump, or a real ump, it won’t change how our catchers receive the ball.”

Gedman believes framing pitches will no longer be important to a catcher’s role behind the plate.

“The presentation’s not going to matter if it’s done electronically,” he said.

Many of the top pitching prospects in the Red Sox organization were in Boston this week for the club’s annual Winter Weekend and the Rookie Development Program. Brayan Bello and Bryan Mata are two pitchers who should become integral to the club’s starting rotation this season and beyond. Both pitched for the WooSox last season and don’t think the implementation of a robo umpire will make much difference on their approach to the game.

“I don’t give it too much thought,” Mata said. “The name of the game is to throw strikes, and that’s what I’m going to do.”

Many, if not all, baseball personnel were hesitant to accept the pitch clock after Major League Baseball instituted it at the minor league levels, specifically when it was strictly enforced at Triple A in 2022. However, once pitchers and catchers learned to adjust to the pitch clock, it sped up the game, and now most of those people who were skeptical agree it has helped the game from a time standpoint.

The acceptance of the robo umpire likely could have a similar introduction to the baseball world.

“It’s hard to say without it really being something that’s happening throughout baseball,” Abraham said. “Major League Baseball, and the people who make those decisions want what’s best for the game and the players.”

—Contact Joe McDonald at JMcDonald2@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoeyMacHockey.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester Red Sox are preparing for robotic ball-strikes system coming