New York Yankees pitcher Luis Severino has made his feelings on an automated strike zone very clear.
«It sucks,» Severino said.
Minor league baseball clubs at the Triple-A level implemented electronic strike zones for the 2023 season. Severino made a minor league rehab start earlier this month and had firsthand experience of how it works.
«It’s too small,» Severino explained. «A batter can stand there and not swing and be [at] 3-1 every time he’s up.»
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Luis Severino of the New York Yankees pitches in the fifth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on May 21, 2023 in Cincinnati. (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
MLB has given no indication that automated strike zones will be used at the major league level anytime soon. But, sometime in the next few years, the technology could hit the big time.
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Baseball has recently seen some big changes with the implementation of a shot clock, bigger bases and a major league ban on infield changes this season.
Last season, the league began having teams automatically field a runner at second base to start the top and bottom of extra innings.
Severino’s teammate, Ryan Weber, also expressed his dissatisfaction with the size of the automated strike zone.
Luis Severino of the New York Yankees smiles before a game against the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium on May 24, 2023 in New York, NY (New York Yankees/Getty Images)
But Weber also pointed out that the current system doesn’t account for pitches that are on the edges of the strike zone.
«Go [from] East to west [on the plate] and use the pool fund,» Weber said. «I was ready for [the new system] and I assumed that my slider and its plumb bob would clip the area, and I got nothing.»
Weber challenged the calls twice, but was unsuccessful in both cases.
«I’ve thrown enough pitches to know what’s a ball and what’s a strike, and they were both strikes,» Weber said. «I really hope he doesn’t come here. He’s sneaking up on me.»
The automatic ball hitting system will be used for the remainder of the minor league season, and MLB will continue to test the system.
Luis Severino of the New York Yankees pitches in the first inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on May 21, 2023 in Cincinnati. (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
But Severino said he wants the ABS to undergo some significant alterations before he has to deal with it again.
“I don’t know how they measure it, but it’s not high enough,” Severino said of the strike zone. “You would have to throw it up the middle and down the zone. [Justin] Verlander is a throwing monster at the top of the zone. How are you going to limit that and have a Hall of Famer like him not throw the four seams out of him?»
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Meanwhile, Severino hopes to avoid pitching at the minor league level for the rest of this season.
«Hopefully, he won’t be here for seven or eight [years] and I’ll be at home, retired,» Severino said between laughs.