MLB will use robot umpires for ball-strike appeals in 2026

A Trackman device used for the Automated Ball-Strike System is posted on the balcony behind home plate before a spring training game between the Kansas City Royals and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025, in Phoenix.Ashley Landis/AP

NEW YORK — Robot umpires are getting called up to the big leagues next season.

Major League Baseball’s 11-man competition committee on Tuesday approved use of the Automated Ball/Strike System in the major leagues in 2026.

Human plate umpires will still call balls and strikes, but teams can challenge two calls per game and get additional appeals in extra innings. Challenges must be made by a pitcher, catcher or batter — signaled by tapping their helmet…