SEC to try out ABS system for tournament in Hoover

Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports

By Chris Marler

Not to sound like an H.G. Wells novel, but robots are indeed coming and specifically coming to Hoover, Alabama next month.

It was announced Monday afternoon that the SEC will become the first major conference in the NCAA to adapt the ABS system for balls and strikes. That came after the NCAA Rules Committee approved using the Major League Baseball-style system for the SEC Baseball Tournament, set for May 19-24.

“The introduction of this challenge system at the SEC Tournament reflects our continued commitment to innovation,” commissioner Greg Sankey said. “This addition represents a continued step forward for our game, aligns more closely with the professional level and supports the development of our student-athletes as they prepare for success at the next level.”

SCOOP: The @NCAA Baseball Rules Committee has approved the @SEC‘s proposal to use experimental ABS (Automated Ball-Strike) Challenges in the upcoming conference tournament, I’m told. Coaches will have (3) specific ABS challenges per game in Hoover. pic.twitter.com/S8NQXXCVJy

— Kendall Rogers (@KendallRogers) May 4, 2026

For the tournament in Hoover, each team will be allowed three challenges per game. If a challenge is successful then that team will retain their challenge. Each team will also receive an additional challenge if a game goes to extra innings.

The decision was as abrupt as it was significant, and it’s sparked plenty of questions. Chief among them: why make a change of this magnitude at the very start of the postseason? Then there are the logistics. How often will challenges be used, will some teams avoid them altogether and will it slow games down? There’s no shortage of valid concerns. It’s a brand-new wrinkle for SEC officiating, debuting at a moment when teams’ seasons are on the line.

That doesn’t mean it’s the wrong decision.

It’s tough to get SEC fans to agree on anything in 2026, but there is one universal truth, frustration with officiating. And it’s not tied to just one sport; it spans the entire league.

That won’t mean there won’t be flaws. It doesn’t mean it will work correctly every time. If the targeting rule has taught us anything, it’s that we could be headed for even more dysfunction on top of the issues already baked into the current system.

Still, it’s a step in the right direction. Officials shouldn’t be deciding outcomes in million-dollar sports because of human error. Thankfully this feels like a step in eliminating that possibility one step, or pitch, at a time.