Can you pat your head and rub your belly at the same time?
I mean, you don’t have to really rub your belly, but the results of this could be nauseating.
The Southeastern Conference will implement a challenge system for balls and strikes on an experimental basis for each game of the 2026 SEC Baseball Tournament, similar to the process implemented in Major League Baseball games this season.
The system will permit teams to challenge an umpire’s strike or ball call via an automated ball tracking system that monitors the exact location of each pitch, relative to the specific batter’s zone.
“The introduction of this challenge system at the SEC Tournament reflects our continued commitment to innovation,” said SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey. “This addition represents a continued step forward for our game, aligns more closely with the professional level and supports the development of our student-athletes as they prepare for success at the next level.”
For the SEC Tournament, each team will have three challenges to start the game. If a challenge is successful, the team will retain the challenge. If the original call is confirmed, the team will lose the challenge.
Upon a challenge, the pitch location will be compared against the electronic strike zone. The result will then be displayed on the stadium videoboard and broadcast.
Honestly, I’m kind of against it. Daniel Jackson does a great job framing pitches and it helps our pitchers have a looser strike zone, as a result. Heck, I’m pretty sure we wont the series against Mississippi State on that benefit alone.
I wonder if it will make our pitchers tighter, or if you just let it loose and let the chips fall where they may?
“Innovation” says Sankey. I’m not sure I’d trust the guy who followed the Innovation of the B1G to move to a nine game conference schedule in football just to realize they cancelled all their OOC P4 games.
Typical skankey. He is loading up to get out. sEC will pay in more ways than one. Just another dumbass. They just keep coming out of their he woodwork. Bring on Bug House!!
Just get a computer to run a damn simulation of the game. They won’t even have to play. Takes the humanity out of it and everything will be perfect.
Not a good idea to start this in the tournament without trying it in the regular season.
Yeah, it’s not like the tournament means anything, right? /s
Should’ve done this in early games, not the tourney. Still, a tight strike zone should help our hitters.
Pure genius to play by a different set of rules in a single elimination tournament after a season of games. Wonder who’s $$$ influenced this decision.
Brought to by satans mercedes benz dealers located locally in the lower bammer foothills….
Eggsackly! I have been impressed with the way it has worked watching the Braves, for example, but an EXPERIMENT in a tournament? Bad idea. And to answer someone’s question, the catcher gets to challenge a ball/strike call. AND teams have limits on challenges so they can’t just challenge everything. A few games ago the Braves catcher challenged a ball call that was a good bit outside and lost, and that challenge was the last one they had. The next pitch was right down Peachtree and the ump called it a ball knowing the Braves were out of challenges. Need to be smart about it.
One more thing – it is detrimental to the SEC to play with a different set of rules than they will have in the National tourney. In general I think it would be fine if everyone was doing it, but I don’t like us being the guinea pigs.
A typical Monday morning meeting at SEC HQ: “OK everyone. Hope you all had a nice weekend. Busy week ahead of us. So, first off….what new thing can we do to fuck things up?”
This “innovation” begs the question…”
“If the electronic pitch calls are more accurate than the ump behind the catcher, why not just let the electronic eyeballs call every pitch?”..
The ump would still be there to call things like balks, time outs, the batter being out of the box, etc..but balls and strikes? This is an admission that technology is more trustworthy.
Will it work both ways? Can the pitcher or catcher question a pitch that was called a ball they think is a strike? Or is it just the at bat team that can question a call. I don’t watch pro sports so I don’t really know how it works.
Lots more walks a-comin!