NORTH PORT, Fla. — Just over a week into the automated ball-strike system (ABS) experiment, Aaron Boone is not a fan.
The earliest Major League Baseball would use the ABS challenge system — giving teams two challenges per game to review a ball or strike call — in the regular season is next year, but teams are giving it a trial run this spring during Grapefruit and Cactus League play.
So far, Boone could very much live without it.
“Overall, taking a step back, big picture, I don’t love it,” Boone said Sunday before an 11-1 loss to the Braves at CoolToday Park.
Boone acknowledged he has liked the “theater of it,” as the review gets played on the scoreboard to show whether the pitch actually clipped the strike zone or not.
But he believes that the system at least partly devalues catcher framing — a Yankees strength — and is worried about it potentially creating division among players about who should get to use the challenges.
One potential tweak? Boone said he would be interested in teams getting one challenge each that they could use from the seventh inning on for big spots in a tight game.
But the current setup is not Boone’s cup of tea.
“Like [Saturday], when you’re just seeing it sporadically throughout the game, there’s eight, nine, 10 [challenges] — that feels weird to me,” Boone said.
“I know coming from me, it sounds funny, but I really think these guys have gotten so good back there as a whole,” added Boone, who has 39 career ejections. “I feel like they keep getting better and better that I don’t think I want anything to change.”
Clarke Schmidt said he felt “great” throwing one inning of live batting practice Saturday in his first action since being bothered by a “cranky” back last week.
“I felt great out there and had no issues today,’’ Schmidt said Sunday at Steinbrenner Field. “I feel like I’m back on track, which is a relief.”
Schmidt will likely throw another live batting practice early this week before getting into a spring training game.
After Sunday’s game, the Yankees reassigned catcher Ronaldo Hernández to minor league camp. … Max Fried will make his spring debut on Monday night against the Pirates at Steinbrenner Field.
— Additional reporting by Dan Martin in Tampa
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