Yankees Veteran Snubs Tarik Skubal’s ABS Protest After Fury Over Aaron Boone’s Claim on Umpire Relationship

Aaron Boone has had plenty of ejections over time in MLB, but Wednesday was just something else. It’s where the umpire and a manager, rather than the game, stole the show. As the Yankees and Astros squared off, in the eighth inning, Brian Walsh, the umpire, tossed both Boone and reliever Devil Williams out after a heated strike zone dispute. Classic boonie, right? Moments later, though, the umpire called a controversial balk on Camilo Doval with the bases loaded, and that had the Bronx in complete disbelief.

But that was not all. A called strike three in the ninth on a pitch that was clearly outside the zone ended the game. So, naturally, there has been plenty of uproar, not just against Walsh but against MLB. Fans don’t want their team compromised by human errors, and they are calling for the ABS to take over ASAP. The idea of an automated ball-strike system is simple—take human error out of the strike zone.

But not everyone is warm to the idea. Take, for example, Tarik Skubal, who was mentioned earlier: “I know it’s going to be implemented… I don’t plan on using them. It’s part of the game, and I love the human element.” But if you ask a veteran of the New York Yankees, Clint Frazier, the ABS is exactly what the league needs to implement.

Frazier, who has been pretty vocal in his new podcast, said, “Put the ABS system into play. Help this poor guy get over it. But I just think that this is another wake-up call for baseball. They need things like this to hit the fans so they can know that the product needs to be changed. Put ABS out there or put Brian Walsh in front of the [ ] camera after the game and let him say, “I [ ] up…” So that means Frazier doesn’t see the ABS as something that is stripping away baseball’s character or essence. But he sees it as a fix to prevent nights like Wednesday from overshadowing the integrity of the game.

And as far as the New York Yankee skipper goes, this is the sixth time he has been ejected from the game. Naturally, questions on how his relations with umpires have come into the spotlight. Boone, however, mentioned that all is good and tried to downplay the animosity. Insisting that he has strong relationships with the empire, Boone said, “It’s not that personal for me with them. I’m just fighting for the [strike]zone. But we’re all human beings, and you get along and enjoy some people and the other way too. That’s part of it.”

Now, Michael Kay sympathized with Boone, saying that he is a great guy and that he himself is not someone who leans on umpires. He reminded everyone that Walsh missed 21 calls, and 15 of them were in favor of the Astros. However, he also added a note of warning to Boone, saying that, “I don’t think he does this team any favor by the constant riling of the umpire.” Because for him, all that hearing from Yanks can become white noise for the umps. And so far Boone had fans wanting him fired; now it seems someone else might be after his job—AI!

What’s stopping MLB from implementing the ABS?

The question across the stadiums and the forums online, and the clubhouses is whether MLB has what it takes to implement the system well. Because it has gone from being a thing of the future to being like a necessity. Like, the Yankee fans are frustrated, and when every game matters in the race for the playoffs, such errors are not what everyone is expecting. In fact, Carlos Rodon’s wife summed it up: “The zone is absolutely horrendous, the entire series…GESH.” So, then what’s stopping ABS from going live tomorrow?

Well, not much. Because, as Clint Frazier mentioned in the same podcast, the stadiums are well equipped with Trackman radar systems and Hawkeye cameras that can pinpoint the pitches down to the inch. Frazier says, “And Hawkeye is insane. Hawkeye can tell you how fast you’re running and how many feet you’re standing in one direction versus where you should be. I mean, they can get it down to the exact coordinates. That will be what the ABS system is using to portray what’s a strike and what’s a ball up on the scoreboard. I think it’s just a matter of they didn’t think it was accurate enough, which I don’t get. Is it more accurate than 90%? Because that’s more accurate than most umpires.” 

So, ABS essentially is not about replacing the human element but rather policing the moments that have never before been policed. And now, parallel to this, there is another aspect: the noise and its AI, and how it could replace the managers. See, managers trust their gut instincts, and everyone knows what happens when they do sometimes. Devin Williams and Aaron Boone mashing is something the Yanks won’t forget. But AI—that is something the front office could rely on. Imagine a system that can calculate under pressure. Sure, leadership and motivation indeed need human touch, but as efficiency becomes king, teams might just opt for AI in crucial moments.

But for now, ABS is the first domino for MLB, and fans are awaiting it to come and make the changes in baseball as needed.