Batters, pitchers and catchers will be able to challenge the umpire’s calls of balls and strikes this season using the Automated Ball-Strike system, and one of the pitchers best positioned to take advantage of the new rules is none other than Los Angeles Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
As detailed by Eno Sarris, Dan Hayes and C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic, fastballs thrown high in the strike zone make up a large proportion of pitches that umpires incorrectly called balls.
And in 2025, Yamamoto was among the league leaders in that category, tying for fourth place.
Both Yamamoto and Logan Webb of the San Francisco Giants had 15 such pitches, behind the Athletics’ Luis Severino with 22, the Milwaukee Brewers’ Quinn Priester with 17 and the Tampa Bay Ray’s Zack Littell with 16.
It’s possible, of course, that these incorrectly called balls will be countered by incorrectly called strikes.
Why Do Umpires Struggle With High Fastballs?
The Athletic asked Cincinnati Reds pitcher Hunter Greene, who’s noticed that high fastballs are less likely to be called strikes.
“A lot of umpires have issues with high-velocity throwers, like they’ll move (flinch) and that will (mess) up their pitch calling,” Greene said. “It’s been like that for a long time.”
Will ABS Change How Yamamoto Plays?
Some pitchers told The Athletic they’re waiting to see if any adjustments will be necessary due to the addition of ABS, while others said they’re expecting to work the top corners of the zone more, knowing that they can remedy incorrect calls.
Yamamoto, the reigning World Series MVP, probably won’t want to change too much, as he has far more to lose than to gain.
That said, if he wants to win the Cy Young Award as the National League’s best pitcher, he might need a little extra beyond just his unconventional warmups.
A few challenges turning called balls into high strikes could be the difference between strikeouts and hits, and between stranded runners and earned runs.
What do you think? Should Yamamoto adjust at all given the addition of ABS? Let us know in the comments.
