Cubs RHP Poteet wins first challenge in ABS test
-
Jesse Rogers
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Chicago Cubs pitcher Cody Poteet became the first player to challenge a ball/strike call in a major league game when he asked for a review of a fastball to Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Max Muncy in the bottom of the first inning of their opening spring game Thursday.
Poteet, acquired from the New York Yankees for Cody Bellinger over the winter, thought the low fastball caught the corner of the plate, but plate umpire Tony Randazzo disagreed, calling it a ball. Per MLB rules this spring, Poteet tapped his head indicating he wanted a review, and quickly the pitch and its location were shown on the scoreboard. The call was reversed, and instead of a 1-1 count, Muncy fell to 0-2 before striking out.
“I was pretty positive it was strike and the umpire balled it,” Muncy said afterward. “I knew it was going to get overturned, and I went, ‘Oh, man, I’m going to be the first one.’ Great.”
Major League Baseball is testing its automatic ball and strike system for the first time during spring training after several years of using it in the minor leagues.
Instead of robots calling every pitch, teams can challenge two calls per game with the ability to retain a successful challenge. Only the pitcher, catcher or hitter can challenge a call and must do so without help from the dugout. Tapping their head is the indication they want to challenge a call.
Poteet spent time in the minors last season and so was familiar with the system.
“I thought it caught a good part of the plate,” he said. “So thought it was worth using one of them. It’s nice to know that it was a strike and not to be the first one to get it wrong, I guess.”
Later in the game, Cubs catcher Pablo Aliendo challenged a ball call, but it was upheld. That ratio — one overturned and one upheld — matches the split in the minors, where 50% of calls were overturned. Games there averaged about four challenges per contest, though Thursday’s had only two.
Muncy was asked whether the system could work at the major league level during the regular season and postseason. The league has already stated it won’t implement it past spring training this year but could as soon as 2026.
“I think the idea is very interesting of it to me,” Muncy said. “I feel like you have to be a hundred percent certain to challenge.”
Five stadiums in Arizona and eight in Florida will have the technology for the challenge system, and 60% of Cactus and Grapefruit league games will feature it. MLB will poll players and coaches after the spring in order to help determine if or when the system will become permanent in the big leagues.
“I feel like every strike matters … so I thought it was a good time to use it today,” Poteet said.
The Cubs beat the Dodgers 12-4. The teams have a rematch Friday before playing each other again to open the season in Japan in March.
Hard-throwing rookie Jacob Misiorowski is a National League All-Star replacement, giving the Milwaukee Brewers right-hander a chance to break Paul Skenes‘ record for the fewest big league appearances before playing in the Midsummer Classic.
Misiorowski was named Friday night to replace Chicago Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd, who will be unavailable for the All-Star Game on Tuesday night in Atlanta because he is scheduled to start Saturday at the New York Yankees.
The 23-year-old Misiorowski has made just five starts for the Brewers, going 4-1 with a 2.81 ERA while averaging 99.3 mph on his fastball, with 89 pitches that have reached 100 mph.
If he pitches at Truist Park, Misiorowski will make it consecutive years for a player to set the mark for fewest big league games before an All-Star showing.
Skenes, the Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander getting ready for his second All-Star appearance, had made 11 starts in the majors when he was chosen as the NL starter for last year’s All-Star Game at Texas. He pitched a scoreless inning.
“I’m speechless,” said a teary-eyed Misiorowski, who said he was given the news a few minutes before the Brewers’ 8-3 victory over Washington. “It’s awesome. It’s very unexpected and it’s an honor.”
Misiorowski is the 30th first-time All-Star and 16th replacement this year. There are now 80 total All-Stars.
“He’s impressive. He’s got some of the best stuff in the game right now, even though he’s a young pitcher,” said Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who is a starting AL outfielder for his seventh All-Star nod. “He’s going to be a special pitcher in this game for a long time so I think he deserved it and it’s going be pretty cool for him and his family.”
Carlos Rodón, Carlos Estévez and Casey Mize were named replacement pitchers on the AL roster.
The New York Yankees‘ Rodón, an All-Star for the third time in five seasons, will replace teammate Max Fried for Tuesday’s game in Atlanta. Fried will be unavailable because he is scheduled to start Saturday against the Chicago Cubs.
In his final start before the All-Star game, Rodón allowed four hits and struck out eight in eight innings in an 11-0 victory over the Cubs.
“This one’s a little special for me,” said Rodón, an All-Star in 2021 and ’22 who was 3-8 in his first season with the Yankees two years ago before rebounding. “I wasn’t good when I first got here, and I just wanted to prove that I wasn’t to going to give up and just put my best foot forward and try to win as many games as I can.”
The Kansas City Royals‘ Estévez replaces Texas’ Jacob deGrom, who is scheduled to start at Houston on Saturday night. Estévez was a 2023 All-Star when he was with the Los Angeles Angels.
Mize takes the spot held by Boston‘s Garrett Crochet, who is scheduled to start Saturday against Tampa Bay. Mize gives the Tigers six All-Stars, most of any team and tied for the franchise record.
Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia will replace Tampa Bay‘s Brandon Lowe, who went on the injured list with left oblique tightness. The additions of Estévez and Garcia give the Royals four All-Stars, matching their 2024 total.
The Seattle Mariners announced center fielder Julio Rodríguez will not participate, and he was replaced by teammate Randy Arozarena. Rodríguez had been voted onto the AL roster via the players’ ballot. The Mariners, who have five All-Stars, said Rodríguez will use the break to “recuperate, rest and prepare for the second half.”
Arozarena is an All-Star for the second time. He started in left field for the AL two years ago, when he was with Tampa Bay. Arozarena was the runner-up to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the 2023 Home Run Derby.
Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen, a first-time All-Star, is replacing Angels left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, who is scheduled to start Saturday night at Arizona. Rasmussen is 7-5 with a 2.82 ERA in 18 starts.
San Diego added a third NL All-Star reliever in lefty Adrián Morejón, who replaces Philadelphia starter Zack Wheeler. The Phillies’ right-hander is scheduled to start at San Diego on Saturday night. Morejón entered the weekend with a 1.71 ERA in 45 appearances.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike