In an interview with the American media, Major League Baseball Rob Manfred has shown his intention to introduce an "automatic referee" into the Major Leagues, where computers will judge strikes and balls again next season in 2024. rice field.

Major League Baseball Commissioner of Baseball responded to an interview with the sports channel "ESPN" on the 29th.



Regarding the "automatic referee" in which the computer judges strikes and balls, he said, "We have a functional automatic strike zone. It is highly likely that we will introduce it." He showed his intention to introduce it to the major leagues.



The automatic referee is a mechanism in which the computer instantly determines whether the ball is a strike or a ball based on the data taken by multiple cameras installed in the stadium, and the result is transmitted by voice to the ball umpire wearing earphones. Listen to the decision and declare a strike and a ball.



"Automatic referees" have already been introduced on a trial basis in 3A of the minor leagues under the Major League Baseball from this season, and according to the Major League Baseball Organization, automatic referees will reduce the match time by an average of 9 minutes.



In the major leagues, it is not uncommon for players and managers to be sent off due to dissatisfaction with the ball umpire's strike or ball judgment, and the live video shows whether or not the player has passed the strike zone instantly. It has been debated for some time whether "automatic referees" should be introduced.



In addition to this, the Manfred Commissioner has revealed that he is considering introducing a "pitch clock" that limits the time between pitchers' pitches to 14 seconds etc. from the next season again, last season. Wants to actively reduce the match time, which was 3 hours and 10 minutes on average per match.



He said that many investors are interested in increasing the number of baseball teams by two from the current 30 teams to 32 teams in the future, saying "I want to reach 32 teams" and want to further expand the popularity of baseball. is.