Cooper: Atlantic League expected to add robot umpires, mound changes in 2019
From J.J. Cooper at Baseball America on February 26, 2019:
The independent Atlantic League has long been an innovator, and they have long been happy to blaze a trail for Major League Baseball to follow.
Now, the two sides have formalized what was already happening informally, as the league and Major League Baseball announced a three-year agreement that will allow MLB to use the independent league as a testbed for rules and equipment changes.
And those rules changes will be significant. While no one with the Atlantic League would confirm the changes, it is expected that the rules tweaks will involve moving back the mound and using Trackman to call balls and strikes, both rules changes that have long been suggested, but are significant enough to require plenty of in-game testing.
Read the full article here: https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/atlantic-league-expected-to-add-robo-umps-other-changes-from-new-mlb-agreement/
Originally published: February 26, 2019. Last Updated: February 26, 2019.