#xfip-decline

#xfip-decline

"I'm pretty insulated from a lot of stuff that's out there. The stuff that I do see or hear, I don't really care anyway because it doesn't have anything to do with the play. I'm just thinking about getting back to execution and executing my pitches."

During Saturday's game between the Red Sox and the Reds, Eugenio Suarez challenged Bucknor on back-to-back strike three calls and successfully had them overturned by the robo ump. It doesn't matter that Suarez ultimately grounded out. What matters is that, in a game where the Reds hit two home runs, the loudest cheers came for a pair of successful ABS challenges.

I think it was good. Came up, obviously a young guy, didn't really know what to expect. Obviously struggled at the start. Being in a new clubhouse, being around guys who had show time, kind of everything, playing against better competition. I think just getting up here, getting my feet wet, it made the transition coming into this year super easy, just because I'm pretty comfortable.

Ohtani is certainly the most inconceivable player we've ever witnessed. But is he really the more valuable of the two?

The idea that the Automated Balls and Strikes challenge system is going to constantly humiliate umpires is, to me, a ridiculous concern. We're talking about hundreds of calls in a game, with upwards of 100 games per week, and 99.9% of the time, ABS doesn't even factor into a pitch at all.