Robot Umpire Used In Minor League Game

Robot umpires are coming to baseball. Last night (July 10th) the independent Atlantic League had a computer call ball and strikes at its All-Star Game, relaying the calls to the human plate umpire through a iPhone in his pocket connected to an earpiece. The umpire, who crouched in his normal position behind the catcher, signaled balls and strikes after getting the calls. The umpires are able to override the TrackMan computer, which uses Doppler radar, and they also have to call check swings, which the computer doesn't evaluate. Atlantic League President Rick White said they're going to implement the computer call system league-wide over the next few weeks. As for when it could come to Major League Baseball, Commissioner Rob Manfred said there's no timeline for it, explaining, "We need to see how it works, first in the Atlantic League and then probably other places, meaning other parts of minor league baseball, before it comes to Major League Baseball." (Associated Press)