Atlantic League Rules for 2022 - DH, Hits for Wild Pitches

MLB's partnership with the Atlantic League continues with two experimental rules announced for 2022: the Double-Hook Designated Hitter Adjustment and Dropped Pitch Rule that awards base hits to batters who steal first base on wild pitches.

Major League Baseball announced the test changes, touting positive results through testing rules "that many baseball fans routinely discuss and want to learn more about."

"Many baseball fans" couldn't be reached for comment.

The ALPB 2022 season's rules experiments are as follows:

> Double-Hook Designated Hitter Adjustment. First introduced alongside the rule moving the pitcher's mound back by one foot in 2021 (a change that didn't make it to the end of the season), the Atlantic League's double-hook DH rule held that a team would only retain the designated hitter for as long as the starting pitcher remained in the game: Once the starting pitcher was removed, the DH terminated and the substitute player would have to bat for themself.

In 2022, the double-hook DH rule adjustment allows a team to keep its DH for the entire game if the starting pitcher completes five innings on the mound, while the team would lose its DH if the started fails to complete five innings of work. MLB's equivalent might be informally deemed the "Shohei Ohtani Rule."

> Dropped Pitch Rule. First introduced in 2019 as "batters may steal first base," this rule states that a batter may attempt to acquire first base on any pitched ball not caught by the catcher.

A batter thus becomes a runner if the following criteria are met: "(i) a pitch, swung at [but not fouled] or taken [but not a hit-by-pitch or fourth ball], is not caught by the catcher, and (ii) both of the batter's feet leave the batter's box, and (iii) the batter, in the umpire's judgment, demonstrates or otherwise creates an impression of his intent to advance to first base. If first base is occupied when the batter chooses to become a runner this creates a force play." New for 2022, batters who arrive at first base safely will be awarded a hit (previously this was a wild pitch or passed ball).

Related Post: Atlantic League Debuts New Rules, E-Zone (7/10/19).

Atlantic League Nixes Robot Umpires, Will Return to Human-Called Strike Zone in 2022

After two years of testing MLB's Automated Ball-Strike System, the Atlantic League will revert to having human umpires call pitches, explaining RoboUmp's cancelation as a natural part of the experiment process while stopping short of deeming the test unsuccessful: "Test rules and equipment are transitional by definition: Some elements remain, others are tweaked and still others are abandoned. That's why MLB and the ALPB conduct the tests."

The ALPB's news release also indicated the formerly independent MLB partner league will return its experimental 61'6" mound distance to the "accepted norm" of 60-feet, six-inches for its 2022 season.

News of the Atlantic League's RoboUmp cancelation follows several high-profile instances of peculiar ball/strike decisions from the computer umpire, many of which we have documented at Close Call Sports under the label "Computer Strike Zone" such as Frank Viola's pair of ejections arguing ball/strike calls made by the ABS computer. It also comes one year after MLB described the Atlantic League's ABS test as a "success."

Related Post: History - Baseball's First Ejection Due to TrackMan (1/18/21).

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, currently presiding over an owners-players union dispute and lockout that continues to threaten Spring Training and potentially part of the 2022 regular season, previously cited his support for implementing the electronic ABS zone at the Major League level, specifically citing the Atlantic League experiment as evidence of RoboUmp's success. Meanwhile, then-Chief Baseball Officer Joe Torre disagreed, stating, "I don't see the robotic strike zone happening."

Related Post: Citing Atlantic Lg, Manfred Ready for Robo-Zone (8/19/19).

Now that the Atlantic League has scrapped the project, will Minor League Baseball—not without its own set of ABS controversies—follow suit?

Related Post: Computer Strike Call Prompts Navas' AFL Ejection (10/16/19).

Atlantic League Introduces 61' 6" Mound Experiment

The Atlantic League, one of MLB's partner leagues, introduced a new experiment this August, moving the pitching rubber back a foot from the traditional 60' 6" mark to 61' 6".

We visit the York Revolution vs Lancaster Barnstormers game to see the ALPB's historic first pitch from an extra foot behind the former mound position.

As the broadcasters surmised, "This in conjunction with the ABS [Automated Ball/Strike System], it'll be interesting to see how the second half [of the season] plays out."

Unfortunately, Lancaster did not use ABS due to apparent technical difficulties with that system.

Video as follows:

Checking in With RoboUmp's Auto Ball/Strike System

We check in with the MLB-partnered Atlantic League's automated ball/strike system (ABS) experiment colloquially referred to as RoboUmp during a recent Lexington Legends vs Lancaster Barnstormers series and find, similar to when the computerized umpire test began severals ago in the ALPB, that RoboUmp appears to still have trouble calling balls and strikes.

Because, frankly, we just don't have the time to sit through an entire game looking for close calls, we found a random smattering of...interesting...decisions by ABS, including a strike three call on a pitch that, well, let's just say evaded detection by the broadcast crew for a good period of time after the delayed strike three mechanic was actually made. 

Jordan Pacheco, the batter called for the strikeout, took to Twitter to express his frustration: "Thank you @MLB for putting the automated strike zone in the @AtlanticLg."

So much for that Trackman-to-Hawkeye upgrade. For a collection of articles about the computer strike zone, the Atlantic League, and beyond (including links to articles that contain video highlighting RoboUmp's best plate work), visit the following article.

Related Post: MLB Announces Atlantic League as First Partner (9/23/20).

Video as follows:

MLB Announces Experimental MiLB Rules for 2021 Season

MLB issued a press release formally announcing several experimental rules for Minor League Baseball's 2021 season, splitting up the tests by level of play such that Low-A through Triple-A will each try out different changes this summer.

Citing fan preferences—"We are listening to our fans" according to MLB Senior VP of On-Field Operations Michael Hill—MLB announced the following changes for MiLB in 2021, a new-look minor league system after MLB restructured its entire operation during last year's extended offseason and the end of its last agreement with the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, as elucidated in the BallPark Digest article "RIP Minor League Baseball: 1901-2020" in which MLB's plan to eliminate up to 42 teams is revealed.

And when teams go away, so too do the umpires who would have been assigned to those games.

As for the 2021 MiLB experiments, by level, they are as follows:

> Triple-A: Larger Bases, from 15 to 18 square inches, which corresponds to a 44% in base size. MLB cites a desire to reduce player injuries and collisions; this is not the first time MLB discussed increasing base size for that purpose and tested this in the Atlantic League in 2019.

Related Post: Atlantic League Debuts New Rules, E-Zone (7/10/19).

> Double-A: Defensive Position restrictions, e.g., elimination of the shift, also from the 2019 Atlantic Lg.

> High-A: Step Off Rule requires pitchers disengage rubber prior to throwing to a base or face the penalty of a balk. This is another Atlantic League innovation from 2019.

> Low-A: Limit pitcher step/pick offs to two per plate appearance. After that, a third pickoff attempt during the same plate appearance that does not retire a runner will result in a balk call.

> Low-A Southeast: Implementation of Automated Ball-Strike System (ABS), the robot/electronic strike zone technology previously seen in the Atlantic League.

> Low-A West: Various pace of play initiatives, such as pitch clock time limit enforcement/new rules.

MLB announced it implemented the new rules "consistent with the preferences of our fans," who took to twitter shortly thereafter to express their dissatisfaction with the news by writing things such as "Fire Manfred into the sun" and "The only thing MLB hates more than baseball is baseball fans."

Video as follows:

MLB Announces Atlantic League as First Partner

Major League Baseball has found its first Partner: The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. The new designation means that ALPB and MLB will meet and coordinate regularly regarding marketing, promotional opportunities, and, yes, experimental rules changes.

MLB's press release states that, "During the 2019 season, MLB and ALPB partnered to successfully test the Automated Ball-Strike System (ABS), which used radar tracking technology to assist home plate umpires in calling balls and strikes."

Given our documentation concerning ABS' performance in the 2019 Atlantic League, however, Webster might want to rewrite the dictionary's definition of the word "success" to better accommodate what actually happened in the 2019 ALPB and Arizona Fall League.

Related Post: Computer Strike Call Prompts Navas' AFL Ejection (10/16/19).

Related Post: ABS Playoff Highlights - Delayed Calls & System Errors (10/1/19).

Related Post: Atlantic League ABS Robo-Ump Ejection Encore (9/28/19).

Related Post: Arizona Fall Testing Automated Ball/Strike System (9/27/19).

Related Post: Bemused Batter Buzzes ABS Online (7/30/19).

Related Post: ALPB's Strike Zone Change & 1st ABS Call (7/26/19).

Related Post: ALPB - Inconsistent TrackMan Use Riles Coaches (7/22/19).

Related Post: ALPB TrackMan Follies - A Neck-High Strike (7/15/19).

Related Post: History - Baseball's First Ejection Due to TrackMan (7/12/19).

Related Post: Reviewing Atlantic League's Automated Strike Zone (7/11/19).

Looks like Joe Torre left his Park Avenue office just in time. | Video as follows:

Related Post: Torre Doesn't Want Robot Umpires in MLB (7/26/19).

The Atlantic Lg's Robo Ump Promo You Never Heard Of

In acknowledging in a press release that some fans just might "hate" the Automated Ball/Strike System (ABS), Atlantic League President Rick White committed an MLB no-no, as the ALPB's ill-fated "Robo Ump" naming competition promotion vanished from view just hours after its announcement.

As Commissioner Rob Manfred navigates the human umpire's future role behind home plate, he has repeatedly pushed back at implications or other attempts to refer to ABS as a robot umpire. For instance, most recently in Davos, Manfred declared to FOX Business, "robots may be an overstatement, what the system actually is..." before further discussing his view of ABS.
Related Post: MLB to Test Electronic Zone at Spring Training (1/22/20).

So when the MLB-partnered Atlantic League issued a press release entitled, "ALPB Clubs Invite Fans to Name Robo Umps," admitting potential negativity surrounding ABS in its first sentence, the independent league may have contradicted MLB's longstanding "keep it positive" narrative.

Despite players' and coaches' varied criticism of the technology, MLB and ALPB have, over the past year, portrayed ABS in remarkably favorable light.

This isn't baseball's first attempted scrubbing.

Thus, White's statement acknowledging the potential for pushback appeared out of the ordinary: "What better day to announce the names of something people are clearly very passionate about...Love or hate it, Atlantic League fans have expressed their feelings to that big black box in their home parks. On Valentine’s Day, they’ll be able to put a name to their passions, and we will have fun along the way."

Nonetheless, this rather unusual promotion came to an abrupt end just hours after its announcement: The Atlantic League removed all traces of it from the ALPB and team websites; however, as Manfred discovered with Tom Hallion and Terry Collins' leaked on-field audio, the internet never forgets.
Related Post: Rob Manfred is in the Jackpot - CBA Cut Hallion-Collins (6/15/18).

If this promotion returns to the ALPB through a reissued release in the coming days, we will discuss and analyze the revisions, if any.

Video as follows:

Atlantic League Championship Ejection - Fred DeJesus

Although a World Series ejection is rarer than a perfect game—there have been just 22 since 1907—Atlantic League umpire Fred DeJesus made up for lost time during the 2019 ALPB Championship Series, ejecting Sugar Land Skeeters Manager Pete Incaviglia after an out call at first base, sending the broadcasters into a tizzy of loaded commentary.

With none out and none on in the bottom of the 7th inning of a 2-2 ballgame between Long Island and Sugar Land, Skeeters batter Cody Stanley hit a ground ball to Ducks second baseman Steve Lombardozzi, who threw to first baseman David Washington as Stanley arrived at first base, ruled out by DeJesus. This brought Incaviglia out of the dugout in short order for a brief argument before the home skipper turned to walk toward the dugout, still upset about the call, as DeJesus let loose with a rare Championship Series ejection.

The optics of an umpire ejecting a manager whose back was turned during the ejection drew quite the animated ire of the Skeeters broadcasting crew, which ran through nearly every item in the exasperated announcer's checklist—"appalled," "absurd," "bush league," "pitiful," "remarkable"—before finally settling on the fabled "money's worth" commentary. The Ducks ultimately won the contest, 3-2, in 10 innings.

"We know who that umpire is, too. We know him. We're not going to grace his name. We know who this guy is, and that is pitiful."

Replay Review is not used for plays on the bases in the Atlantic League, though the league does use an Automated Ball/Strike System for pitch calls, thus eliminating balls/strikes ejections.
Related Post: Atlantic League ABS Robo-Ump Ejection Encore (9/28/19).

Video as follows:

ABS Playoff Highlights - Delayed Calls & System Errors

The Atlantic League, ahead of MLB's postseason, carried its TrackMan Automated Ball/Strike System (ABS) into the playoffs in York, with the Revs broadcasters and players appearing to grow frustrated with the computer zone now that the games actually matter...a sign of things to come?

The Freedom Division Championship Series between Sugar Land and York, won by the Sugar Land Skeeters, featured quite a few interesting rulings from ABS, with broadcasters at one point turning an adjective sometimes used (by Hawk Harrelson) to describe umpires into an insult intended for the electronic strike zone: "Man, that was brutal...that one was just plain bad."

Has the ALPB ABS honeymoon officially ended now that the postseason has arrived?

The other main highlight of ABS in York pertained to time spent waiting for ABS to make a call, including some calls resulting in a three-plus second delay such that the pitcher had already received a throw back from his catcher before the home plate umpire made a call, adding to the visible confusion.

Now playing on ABS: Delayed strike calls.

Imagine a one-out, two on (R1, R3) situation with a 3-1 count and the runner from first base taking off for second. The catcher doesn't have the luxury of waiting three seconds to find out if ABS tracked the pitch as a ball or a strike, so his throw down to second base gets away and into center field, enabling the runner from third to score and the runner from first base to advance to third. And after all of that mess, ABS rules the pitch ball four anyhow, rendering the throw to second entirely unnecessary.

Video as follows:

Atlantic League ABS Robo-Ump Ejection Encore

With the Atlantic League playoffs underway, we decided to check in on the Automated Ball/Strike System and...HP Umpire Derek Moccia just doled out the first ABS ejection in ALPB postseason history after a computer's strike three call to High Point Rockers batter Michael Russell on Long Island didn't sit well with the visiting squad, as the Ducks completed the series sweep over High Point to advance to the Atlantic League Championship Series.

The ejection report is as follows: HP Umpire Derek Moccia ejected Rockers Pitching Coach Frank Viola for arguing the Automated Ball/Strike System's strike calls in the top of the 2nd inning of the Rockers-Ducks Liberty Division Championship Series, Game 3. With one out and one on (R1), Rockers batter Michael Russell took four pitches from Ducks pitcher Seth Simmons—one called a ball and three called strikes. At the time of the ejection, the Ducks were leading, 2-0. The Ducks ultimately won the contest, 3-2.

Although Frank Viola hasn't been the ALPB's only balls/strikes ejection in the electronic ABS era, Viola has been the league's most outspoken critic following his ejection on the very first regular season day of ABS in July. He now adds "first-ever postseason ABS ejection" to his ALPB résumé.
Related Post: History - Baseball's First Ejection Due to TrackMan (7/12/19).
Related Post: Frank Viola Not a Fan of ALPB Rules Changes (8/3/19).

Video as follows:

Atlantic League's Bench-Clearing Balk Ejections & Protest

The Atlantic League-MLB experimental balk rule requiring pitchers to step off the rubber during pickoffs produced a handful of ejections and protested game after a quasi-bench clearing argument in High Point led to all umpires entertaining multiple complaints from a Rockers team upset about a pickoff play to end the bottom of the 3rd inning of Wednesday night's 5-1 loss to Southern Maryland.

The Play: With two out and one on (R1), Blue Crabs pitcher Daryl Thompson picked off Rockers baserunner Stephen Cardullo at first base to end the inning, ruled out by 1B Umpire Thomas Newsom.

The ALPB Balk Rule: Under the indy league's MLB partnership, baseball's balk rule was modified to require that pitchers disengage the pitcher's plate in order to attempt a pickoff.
Related Post: Atlantic League Debuts New Rules, E-Zone (7/10/19).

Is this is a legal disengagement maneuver?

SIDEBAR: If this league's test rule requires pitchers disengage, and pitcher Thompson has disengaged, the question of whether this is a no-step balk is irrelevant, since Rule 6.02(a)(3) states "it is a balk when—The pitcher, while touching his plate, fails to step directly toward a base before throwing to that base" (bold added for emphasis). The only question is whether Thompson's toe tap with his back/pivot foot while turning his body toward first base constitutes a legal disengagement. I'd surmise that under the "old" rule, this is legal...but what about under the experimental balk rule in the Atlantic League? And is this a judgment call or rules interpretation?

After all, MLB recently deemed that a "toe tap" during delivery is not to be construed as a second step...so how about a "toe tap"-style disengagement of the rubber. Is that to be considered legal pursuant to the ALPB-MLB balk rule experiment as it would under the "old" rule?
Related Post: MLB Rules Gearrin's Toe Tap Legal - Analysis (8/29/19).

Argument, Ejections, and Protest: What followed at BB&T Point Stadium in High Point, North Carolina during the post-inning changeover was what may be the slowest single-squad bench-clearing incident of the season, largely because the team on offense now transitioned to becoming the team on defense, with a detour to argue with the umpiring crew.

Multiple argument and ejections ensue.

High Point's prolonged argument resulted in a nearly-10-minute delay, featured multiple ejections (the box score indicated RF Stephen Cardullo [the picked off runner], CF Jared Mitchell, and P Michael Bowden, but did not list Manager Jamie Keefe, who threw his hat, etc.), and concluded with a protested game.

Cardullo's ejection, specifically, was of the "parting shot" variety, which occurs when a player/coach/manager says one final phrase to the umpire and immediately turns his back to walk away. In general, this phrase is personal, profane, or otherwise excessively unsporting, unacceptable, and ejectable.

The parting shot ejection is an optical illusion.

The optics of the "parting shot" ejection relies on normal human reaction time so that by the time the umpire ejects the offender, it appears the umpire has become the aggressor, or in the High Point broadcaster's words, "He did it with the guy's back turned." It is meant to make the violating party look innocent to the umpire's "overreaction" in ejecting someone who is walking way, never mind what that person said or did just moments earlier.

Later on in the festivities, many of High Point's uniformed personnel converged around the three umpires to argue, resulting in at least three separate and simultaneous discussions that included HP Umpire Larry Rosenberg, 1B Umpire Newsom, and 3B Umpire Lindy Hall.

Although Official Baseball Rule 7.04 explicitly states, "no protest shall ever be permitted on judgment decisions by the umpire," whether or not High Point's protest is of the umpires' judgment that pitcher Thompson legally disengaged the rubber in throwing to first base or of the umpires' interpretation of the modified balk rule might be a futile splitting of hairs, at least in this particular organization. After all, the Atlantic League office overturned an umpire's on-field judgment call earlier this season.
Related Post: Atlantic League Overturns Umpire's Judgment Call (7/14/19).

Video as follows:

Citing Atlantic Lg, Manfred Ready for Robo-Zone

Two MLB executives appear to have made conflicting calls—and they're not even umpires.

Just weeks after Chief Baseball Officer Joe Torre soured on the robot strike zone concept, Commissioner Rob Manfred told ESPN he is ready and "very comfortable" with the technology, pointing to the Atlantic League automated ball/strike system experiment—yes, the same one where the umpire ejected a coach during the first inning of the first day of the first game for arguing a computer-aided ball/strike call—as a success to support his view.

The Commissioner also discussed his desire to tweak the game's offense by automating the strike zone: "I think an automated strike zone puts you in a position to manage that strike zone. Where should it be exactly to produce the amount of offense that you want?"

"Manage that strike zone?" It's already happened. The Atlantic League in late July put conceptual strike zone management into action by changing the definition of the electronic-defined zone, effectively shortening the strike zone's verticality by approximately three inches at the top and bottom of the zone.
Related Post: ALPB's Strike Zone Change & 1st ABS Call (7/26/19).

Manfred's comments marks a stark contrast to Torre's own statements on The Dan Patrick Show in July, during which Torre said, "I don't see the robotic strike zone happening."
Related Post: Torre Doesn't Want Robot Umpires in MLB (7/26/19).

Meanwhile, it might just be this strike zone issue that brings National League West rivals Madison Bumgarner of the San Francisco Giants and Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers together: both ace pitchers recently referred to the electronic and robot strike system as "stupid."

Listen to Manfred, Torre, and MadBum's quotes, as well as a clue for what could happen to TrackMan at season's end (hint: Hawk-eye's coming). | Video as follows:

Frank Viola Not a Fan of ALPB Rules Changes

Three weeks removed from his ejection for arguing an Automated Ball/Strike System pitch call in the Atlantic League, High Point Rockers Pitching Coach Frank Viola is still dissatisfied. Experimental rule changes adopted by the ALPB in its partnership with MLB have provoked a strong reaction from Viola, who has become somewhat of a de facto leader of the independent league rebellion against some of ALPB/MLB's most daring initiatives.

Viola recently categorized some of the ALPB's second-half rules changes - which include allowing batters to steal first base on all uncaught pitches (passed ball, wild pitch, etc.) and requiring pitchers to disengage the rubber before attempting a pickoff - as "horrendous."
Related Post: Atlantic League Debuts New Rules, E-Zone (7/10/19).

The former big leaguer was the Atlantic League's first electronic pitch caller's ejection, less than one inning into the technology's official debut.
Related Post: History - Baseball's First Ejection Due to TrackMan (7/12/19).

Viola said of ABS, "It’s making a mockery of everything. We played a game night in High Point that at least a dozen pitches were missed, and this is the second week into TrackMan. It’s not just my team, it’s the other team as well...Until they get it right, it’s just potluck guessing.”

And in a similar vein to our chief complaint about PitchCast's propensity for visual error in Major League Baseball, Viola summarized a key part of the problem as a lack of communication and transparency: "It’s like we’re out in the cold, not having a clue what’s going on, and I think that’s the biggest complaint we have. Show us what you’re doing and give us an understanding of how we can work with it instead of having to be against it right now."
Related Post: Podcast - Truth About Baseball's Electronic Strike Zone (6/5/19).

Bemused Batter Buzzes ABS Online

It's been a busy week of baseball, so we nearly missed Southern Maryland Blue Crabs CF Cory Vaughn of the Atlantic League taking to social media after the Automated Ball-Strike System called him back to home plate as a 3-1 pitch fooled him and the Lancaster Barnstormers broadcast.

Vaughn made the most of his brush with ABS ("Stu" as the broadcaster calls it) by sharing his experience publicly on Facebook, writing, "In case anyone wants to see how the new automated balls/strikes are going via the trackman system in the Atlantic league... watch me moonwalk back to the plate lol #alpb #robotumpire #milb #mlb #trackman."

#Weknow. Fortunately for Vaughn, his unexpected strike occurred in the top of the 1st inning, a fairly low-leverage time of the ballgame. But at some point, ABS will call such a pitch at a crucial moment, such as the bottom of the 6th inning with the bases loaded and a 3-2 count, otherwise known as the Angel Hernandez/Eloy Jimenez call on Sunday. And with a run on the line, we'll check back in to see how ABS holds up.

In other words, ABS—and its electronic QuesTec, Pitch f/x, and StatCast ancestors and brethren—have made certain unorthodox ball/strike calls the opposite of traditional baseball's expected call, which has turned up the heat on all umpires, both human and computerized.
Related Post: MLB Ejection 142 - Angel Hernandez (2; Rick Renteria) (7/28/19).

Video as follows:

ALPB's Strike Zone Change & 1st ABS Call

The Atlantic League rolled out its Automated Ball-Strike System (ABS) to all teams on a full-time basis Thursday, marking the first day the electronic K-zone pitch calling tool will be used on a consistent basis in the ALPB. The league also changed the definition of the strike zone (well, the computer definition of the strike zone, anyway) and full-time ABS' first-ever pitch call on the first pitch of the first ABS game at High Point had an interesting visual translation.

Ball one indicated by the attached graphic ushered in a new era in professional baseball (I surmise the Atlantic League's prior ABS use was deemed irregular or somewhat of a beta test, whereas the league put out a press release announcing Thursday, July 25 as a "landmark day for the Atlantic League and professional baseball," according to ALPB President Rick White.

ALPB also apparently changed the strike zone, or at least its computer definition. According to a local reporter covering Lancaster, PA's team, under ABS, "vertically, a pitch has to be completely within the strikezone [sic] to be called a strike. Horizontally, a pitch only needs to be partially in the zone."

ALPB - Inconsistent TrackMan Use Riles Coaches

Since Frank Viola's notable ejection arguing TrackMan's Automated Ball/Strike System in Game 1 of the electronic strike zone experiment, umpires have ejected other Atlantic League managers over balls/strikes concerns.

According to the ALPB / MLB joint press release July 11, 2019, the 2019 Atlantic League Championship Season was to feature new experimental playing rules, including, "Home plate umpire assisted by radar tracking system and an MLB-defined strike zone."

Despite ALPB's efforts, while TrackMan's ABS wasn't ready Opening Day and doesn't appear to be fully functional for the season's second half, either, inaugural TrackMan ejectee Frank Viola sounded off on the electronic strike zone, accusing its handlers of failing to measure players before implementing strike zones on their behalf. Meanwhile, other coaches have been ejected in the new ABS era, with or without the technology in use.

Video reveals two more post-ABS ejections.

New Britain Ejection: New Britain's stadium reportedly hasn't yet used ABS, as York Revolution Manager Mark Mason discovered when he was ejected by HP Umpire William Best following a strike call against Bees batter Isais Tejada in the top of the 7th inning of July 21's Revolution-Bees game in New Britain. York, of course, does have ABS installed.

Somerset Ejection: Another stadium that has seen TrackMan in testing is Somerset's TD Bank Ballpark. On July 16, HP Umpire Matt Criss ejected Patriots RF Justin Pacchioli and Manager Brett Jodie after a strike two ruling in the 6th inning. This would seem to indicate there might be a hiccup or two pertaining to the institution of the automated ball/strike system across the Atlantic League.

ALPB Bees-Pats Non-Steal Pact, Ejection Cycle

An umpire ejection cycle (all umpires had ejections) a New Britain batter refusing to steal first base, and Somerset's General Manager on the field during a dispute with the umpires featured in the Atlantic League's latest edition of screwy baseball, highlighting Sunday's modified doubleheader between New Britain and Somerset on the heels of the ALPB-ordered resumption of play following an overturned judgment call from the night before.

Sunday brought more Atlantic League fun.

A Resumed Game: To recap, HP Umpire Leonardo had called Patriots batter-runner Ramon Flores out at home plate with two outs in the bottom of the 9th inning of Saturday's Bees-Patriots game, with New Britain leading 7-6, thus ending the game. Somerset appealed to the league office based on the finding that New Britain catcher Logan Moore failed to tag Flores (Moore dropped the baseball during the tag attempt; Leonardo had ruled the runner out).

Despite Official Baseball Rule 7.04 which states, "No protest shall ever be permitted on judgment decisions by the umpire," Atlantic League President Rick White ordered the game restarted at the point of interruption (e.g., the game tied at seven with two outs in the ninth), having reversed Leonardo's judgment call of "out" to that of "safe."
Related Post: Atlantic League Overturns Umpire's Judgment Call (7/14/19).

SIDEBAR: This is not a rules interpretation issue! It is a judgment call made by a home plate umpire who simply ruled the runner out on the tag and did not observe that the catcher dropped the ball. It's that simple and has nothing to do with the application or misapplication of OBR's definition of a tag. The teachable moment for umpires is to look for a possessed ball to confirm the validity of a tag, especially on a game-ending play, but do not confuse the umpire's apparent error with a rules interpretation issue; it is not!
Related Post: Replay Rewind - Hollywood Magic at Dodger Stadium (9/5/18).

When play resumed Sunday, New Britain retired Somerset to end the ninth and, thanks to the Atlantic League's extra-inning tiebreaker rule wherein a runner starts the inning at second base, scored three runs in the top of the 10th, holding Somerset to one run in the bottom frame, to win the resumed game, 10-8.

Pats President/GM discusses the pre-game EJ.

3B Umpire Steve Leonardo's Ejection? During the plate meeting ahead of Game 2, 3B Umpire Leonardo motioned to the Patriots dugout and appeared to effect an ejection mechanic. It was unclear what this potential pregame ejection concerned, though the broadcasters noted the uniform number of the offending party ended in a 4 (C Yovan Gonzalez [4], IF Dario Pizzano [14], P David Kubiak [24], C Mike Ohlman [34], 1B Coach Fox Beyer [44]; all players were seen on the field or in the dugout during the game and it appeared Leonardo may have dispalyed a repeated digit by virtue of palm-out/palm-in, as in #44 Beyer).

Even stranger, Somerset Patriots President/General Manager Patrick McVerry appeared to join the conversation between the umpires and Patriots Field Manager Brett Jodie following this ejection signal before leaving the discussion with a phone to his ear.

Batter Ford refused to steal first base.

Bees Batter Refuses to Steal First Base: Despite a new Atlantic League rule that allows batters to "steal" first base during any uncaught pitch, New Britain leadoff hitter Darren Ford remained in the batter's box following a 1-2 pitch in the dirt that careened to the backstop, signaling to the Patriots dugout that he wouldn't be taking the base on such a wild pitch, to which the dugout broke out into applause. Somerset's broadcast speculated that there may have been a gentleman's agreement between the teams not to take advantage of the new rule.

A two-strike bunt preceded an ejection.

1B Umpire Derrick Brooks' Ejection: With two out and none on in the top of the 5th inning, Bees batter Bijan Rademacher bunted a 2-2 pitch (recall that one of ALPB's other new rules allows one foul bunt with two strikes) to catcher Patriots catcher Gonzalez, who threw to first baseman Edwin Espinal as Rademacher arrived at first base, ruled out by 1B Umpire Brooks. Rademacher was subsequently ejected arguing the out/safe call.

HP Umpire Criss ejects Pats' Ohlman

HP Umpire Matt Criss' Ejection: With none out and none on in the bottom of the 8th inning, Patriots batter Mike Ohlman took a 3-1 pitch from Bees pitcher Anthony Alicki for a called second strike, and was ejected arguing this ruling as broadcasters concluded, "he certainly got his money's worth."

The SPN.tv broadcast speculated it was Ohlman (#34) whom Leonardo addressed prior to the game, in which case the sequence would have resulted in an apparent rescinded ejection, which, if it was indeed an ejection that was revised to a warning, ultimately resulted in a delayed false-double-ejection later in the game.

With this ejection, the three-umpire crew completed the ejection cycle (or at least the ejection mechanic cycle) on another increasingly-business-as-usual day in the Atlantic League.

Video as follows: