So here we go again. People are demanding robots be used to call the strike zone in Major League Baseball.
https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-commissioner-rob-manfred-addresses-growing-support-for-automated-strike-zone/
I'm not surprised by fans who never understood the rules, nor the players whose egos assume they are right and trained professional officials are wrong, but there are a lot of people involved in this issue, who really should have a better grasp of why this is a bad idea.
Let's start by looking at who is complaining about the strike zone. Players and managers and media, though not all of them. It's the batters who strike out, and pitchers who can't find the plate, and managers whose teams lose. Basically, it's an excuse to get away from having a bad day. Media, of course, loves to pile on officials, it's an easy to way to get fans excited without offending a fan base, even if it is a cheap shot against trained professional officials. But before I get too far down the road, let's also consider how umpires are treated, because that is relevant to the question.
Hating umpires is a long tradition, going back to its beginnings. In early days, even the best umpires faced physical danger from just doing their job. In 1908, for example, umpire Hank O'Day received death threats and actual physical attacks just because he correctly called a close game against the Giants.
https://books.google.com/books?id=YGa_DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA56&lpg=PA56&dq=baseball+umpire+killed+by+mob&source=bl&ots=iQv2Ro308Y&sig=O6JKXxPt3SQin9PJ-hDjCNi6J2A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjwypqmoOHVAhWDZVAKHVBJCz8Q6AEITDAH#v=onepage&q=baseball%20umpire%20killed%20by%20mob&f=false
Babe Ruth once punched an umpire for throwing him out of a game
http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2012/06/this-day-in-history-after-facing-one-batter-babe-ruth-punches-an-umpire-for-throwing-him-out-of-the-game-ruths-replacement-then-throws-a-no-hitter/
If you think that's just old history, not relevant to the game, consider that umpires were physically assaulted during a game in recent years, as well
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=90697
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1981/10/10/A-baseball-fan-with-a-blackjack-ran-onto-the/7251371534400/
Umpires have been physically assaulted by coaches and players, and I don't mean just the yelling
http://www.mercurynews.com/2010/07/20/youth-baseball-umpire-attacked-knocked-unconscious-by-coach/
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1019290-ugliest-mlb-umpire-playermanager-incidents-ever
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umpire_abuse
and this even happens in Little League
http://www.foxnews.com/story/2007/07/16/little-league-baseball-umpires-attacked-by-fans-with-pizza.html
Why is this relevant? Two reasons. First, people who hate umpires really don't have a clue about what the job requires, not only in game knowledge and rules, but also patience with the ridiculous egos of athletes and coaches. The second reason is an acknowledgement that some umpires have better zone control than others, but are MLB umpires for skills in other areas. While it would be great to select the best umpires from thousands of applicants, the way player selection goes, the plain fact is that the harassment and abuse of officials means that a lot of players who finish playing and would be great additions as officials, chose not to become umpires because they don't want to go through the abuse they know gets heaped on officials. That means you get the best available officials to work the games, from a much smaller pool. And the deliberate disrespect from media is not going to help encourage better officiating in the future. The simple fact is, most people who have strong opinions really don't know the rules, and even eth ones who do, usually don't have the guts to pass the test, get the equipment, and start working games to rise through the ranks themselves. It's easy to be a screaming jerk, and they are everywhere. People with the metal in their backbone to become umpires, are a lot more rare.
How much do we need MLB umpires? Peer into the Wayback machine here, and take a look at what happened when the umps went on strike in 1999.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999_Major_League_Umpires_Association_mass_resignation
http://theclassical.org/articles/called-out-the-forgotten-baseball-umpires-strike-of-1999
The short version? Dictating strike zones to umpires is stupid, and trying to replace a bunch of Major League officials with replacements is incredibly stupid.
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/10/2/3444436/the-history-of-replacement-umpires
Here's the thing aside from the officials' egos, and since they are human, that's definitely a factor, umpires keep the game safe, enforce the rules evenly, and promote good sportsmanship. If you have ever watched the consequences of one of those 'beer leagues' that try to have a season without paying for real umpires, you can get an idea of what I mean.
But the idea that robot strike zones is going to be the answer is stupid on its face as well. It sounds easy enough, just program a machine to watch where the ball goes, and let it ding the strikes and balls. But in reality, it doesn't play out that well.
First problem: This is most people's idea of a strike zone:
Nice neat box, with clear lines, right?
Sorry, no.
The actual strike zone is three dimensional, not two. It looks more like this:
Second complication: The batter sets the low and high end when he steps into the box, right? But he stands up and crouches at different times before the pitch comes in, and the zone is supposed to lock in, so at what point do you program the robot to set the zone?
Here?
Or here?
Or somewhere else? People have different stances, move in different ways, so whatever you program the machine, you will put some at an advantage and others at a disadvantage.
Keep in mind that, technically, any pitch that catches any part of the plate is a strike, so even wild pitches could conceivably be called strikes. Have fun explaining that to a coach, especially if first base is occupied.
Next, keep in mind as well that your robot will depend on clean optics and baseball is filled with dirt, mud, spit and gunk. What happens when the camera lens gets blurred?
Let's also keep in mind that players long ago learned how to make it hard for umpires to tell things like whether they were standing in or out of the batter's box,
And sometimes kick a little dirt onto the plate if there is a runner at third and there may be a safe/out call at home
Catchers sometimes move up during a pitch to keep umpires from seeing if a pitch is too low:
Don't be naive enough to think players and coaches won't figure out tricks to spoof a camera.
Taking away ball/strike calls from umpires won't make the game faster or more accurate, really. It will just offend the men who have been doing the job really well for more than a century, allow advantages for some kinds of batters and pitchers and disadvantages for others, and it will introduce baseball to a new set of tricks and cheats.
Let's not forget, as well, that this will also make it harder for new rookies coming up from minor league clubs, and new talent coming in from high schools and colleges. This will throw a spanner straight into every MLB club's farm system.
All because a few egos got bent again.
It's a really bad idea.
https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-commissioner-rob-manfred-addresses-growing-support-for-automated-strike-zone/
I'm not surprised by fans who never understood the rules, nor the players whose egos assume they are right and trained professional officials are wrong, but there are a lot of people involved in this issue, who really should have a better grasp of why this is a bad idea.
Let's start by looking at who is complaining about the strike zone. Players and managers and media, though not all of them. It's the batters who strike out, and pitchers who can't find the plate, and managers whose teams lose. Basically, it's an excuse to get away from having a bad day. Media, of course, loves to pile on officials, it's an easy to way to get fans excited without offending a fan base, even if it is a cheap shot against trained professional officials. But before I get too far down the road, let's also consider how umpires are treated, because that is relevant to the question.
Hating umpires is a long tradition, going back to its beginnings. In early days, even the best umpires faced physical danger from just doing their job. In 1908, for example, umpire Hank O'Day received death threats and actual physical attacks just because he correctly called a close game against the Giants.
https://books.google.com/books?id=YGa_DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA56&lpg=PA56&dq=baseball+umpire+killed+by+mob&source=bl&ots=iQv2Ro308Y&sig=O6JKXxPt3SQin9PJ-hDjCNi6J2A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjwypqmoOHVAhWDZVAKHVBJCz8Q6AEITDAH#v=onepage&q=baseball%20umpire%20killed%20by%20mob&f=false
Babe Ruth once punched an umpire for throwing him out of a game
http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2012/06/this-day-in-history-after-facing-one-batter-babe-ruth-punches-an-umpire-for-throwing-him-out-of-the-game-ruths-replacement-then-throws-a-no-hitter/
If you think that's just old history, not relevant to the game, consider that umpires were physically assaulted during a game in recent years, as well
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=90697
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1981/10/10/A-baseball-fan-with-a-blackjack-ran-onto-the/7251371534400/
Umpires have been physically assaulted by coaches and players, and I don't mean just the yelling
http://www.mercurynews.com/2010/07/20/youth-baseball-umpire-attacked-knocked-unconscious-by-coach/
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1019290-ugliest-mlb-umpire-playermanager-incidents-ever
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umpire_abuse
and this even happens in Little League
http://www.foxnews.com/story/2007/07/16/little-league-baseball-umpires-attacked-by-fans-with-pizza.html
Why is this relevant? Two reasons. First, people who hate umpires really don't have a clue about what the job requires, not only in game knowledge and rules, but also patience with the ridiculous egos of athletes and coaches. The second reason is an acknowledgement that some umpires have better zone control than others, but are MLB umpires for skills in other areas. While it would be great to select the best umpires from thousands of applicants, the way player selection goes, the plain fact is that the harassment and abuse of officials means that a lot of players who finish playing and would be great additions as officials, chose not to become umpires because they don't want to go through the abuse they know gets heaped on officials. That means you get the best available officials to work the games, from a much smaller pool. And the deliberate disrespect from media is not going to help encourage better officiating in the future. The simple fact is, most people who have strong opinions really don't know the rules, and even eth ones who do, usually don't have the guts to pass the test, get the equipment, and start working games to rise through the ranks themselves. It's easy to be a screaming jerk, and they are everywhere. People with the metal in their backbone to become umpires, are a lot more rare.
How much do we need MLB umpires? Peer into the Wayback machine here, and take a look at what happened when the umps went on strike in 1999.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999_Major_League_Umpires_Association_mass_resignation
http://theclassical.org/articles/called-out-the-forgotten-baseball-umpires-strike-of-1999
The short version? Dictating strike zones to umpires is stupid, and trying to replace a bunch of Major League officials with replacements is incredibly stupid.
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/10/2/3444436/the-history-of-replacement-umpires
Here's the thing aside from the officials' egos, and since they are human, that's definitely a factor, umpires keep the game safe, enforce the rules evenly, and promote good sportsmanship. If you have ever watched the consequences of one of those 'beer leagues' that try to have a season without paying for real umpires, you can get an idea of what I mean.
But the idea that robot strike zones is going to be the answer is stupid on its face as well. It sounds easy enough, just program a machine to watch where the ball goes, and let it ding the strikes and balls. But in reality, it doesn't play out that well.
First problem: This is most people's idea of a strike zone:
Nice neat box, with clear lines, right?
Sorry, no.
The actual strike zone is three dimensional, not two. It looks more like this:
Second complication: The batter sets the low and high end when he steps into the box, right? But he stands up and crouches at different times before the pitch comes in, and the zone is supposed to lock in, so at what point do you program the robot to set the zone?
Here?
Or here?
Or somewhere else? People have different stances, move in different ways, so whatever you program the machine, you will put some at an advantage and others at a disadvantage.
Keep in mind that, technically, any pitch that catches any part of the plate is a strike, so even wild pitches could conceivably be called strikes. Have fun explaining that to a coach, especially if first base is occupied.
Next, keep in mind as well that your robot will depend on clean optics and baseball is filled with dirt, mud, spit and gunk. What happens when the camera lens gets blurred?
Let's also keep in mind that players long ago learned how to make it hard for umpires to tell things like whether they were standing in or out of the batter's box,
And sometimes kick a little dirt onto the plate if there is a runner at third and there may be a safe/out call at home
Catchers sometimes move up during a pitch to keep umpires from seeing if a pitch is too low:
Don't be naive enough to think players and coaches won't figure out tricks to spoof a camera.
Taking away ball/strike calls from umpires won't make the game faster or more accurate, really. It will just offend the men who have been doing the job really well for more than a century, allow advantages for some kinds of batters and pitchers and disadvantages for others, and it will introduce baseball to a new set of tricks and cheats.
Let's not forget, as well, that this will also make it harder for new rookies coming up from minor league clubs, and new talent coming in from high schools and colleges. This will throw a spanner straight into every MLB club's farm system.
All because a few egos got bent again.
It's a really bad idea.
That which does not kill me, will try again and get nastier