Sports briefs
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MLB switching to challenge system full-time for robot umpires experiment
NEW YORK | Baseball’s top minor leagues are switching to a challenge system full-time for their test of robot umpires.
Major League Baseball has been experimenting with the automated ball-strike system in the minor leagues since 2019. It has been used at all Triple-A ballparks this year for the second straight season, the robot alone for the first three games of each series and a human with a challenge system in the final three.
Starting June 25, only the challenge system will be used, according to a memo sent Tuesday from MLB vice president of on-field strategy Joe Martinez to farm directors and Triple-A managers that was obtained by The Associated Press.
MLB says 47% of challenges have been successful this year.
As part of the change, the number of challenges allowed per team will be decreased from three to two in the International League but will remain at three in the Pacific Coast League. A team retains its challenge if successful, similar to the regulations for big league teams with video reviews.
Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said last month robot umpires were unlikely to come to the major leagues for 2025 and refinements were needed.
“There’s a growing consensus in large part based on what we’re hearing from players that the challenge form should be the form of ABS if and when we bring it to the big leagues, at least as a starting point,” Manfred said on May 23 following an owners meeting. “I think that’s a good decision.”
Coming to a consensus on what a computer strike zone should look like remains an obstacle. There is little desire to call the strike zone as defined in the rule book as a cube. The ABS currently calls strikes solely based on where the ball crosses the midpoint of the plate, 8.5 inches from the front and the back. The top of the strike zone was increased to 53.5% of batter height this year, up from 51%.
In data accompanying the memo, MLB said 61% of staff and players prefer the challenge system and 11% liked the full robot system. MLB said fans preferred the challenge system by a 2-1 margin.
MLB said almost 40% of Triple-A games have had more than six total challenges and that 89% of fans said the optimal number was six or fewer.
Yankees star Aaron
Judge leaves game after getting hit on hand
NEW YORK | Yankees star Aaron Judge left Tuesday night’s game against the Baltimore Orioles, one inning after he was hit on the left pinkie by a 94.1 mph fastball from Albert Suárez.
Gritting his teeth and flexing the hand, Judge went to first base in the third inning. He was examined by an athletic trainer and remained in the game. He scored on Giancarlo Stanton’s single and then went up the tunnel toward the clubhouse.
Judge played center field in the top of the fourth inning but was lifted for pinch-hitter Trent Grisham in the bottom half. The Yankees said Judge was going for imaging at New York–Presbyterian Hospital and will be examined by head team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad.
Judge is hitting .302 and leads the major leagues with 26 homers and 64 RBIs. The 32-year-old is a five-time All-Star and was the 2022 AL MVP after hitting 62 home runs to break the AL record of 61 by Roger Maris set in 1961.
Judge missed 45 games in 2018 with a broken right wrist after he was hit by a pitch from Kansas City’s Jakob Junis.
Los Angeles Dodgers star Mookie Betts broke his left hand Sunday when hit by a pitch from Royals pitcher Dan Altavilla and is expected to miss six to eight weeks.
Washington Commanders settle lawsuit with Virginia on ticket deposits
The Washington Commanders have settled a lawsuit with Virginia over their handling of season-ticket deposits under previous ownership, the last litigation remaining from that situation a decade ago.
The $1.3 million settlement with Virginia includes returning $600,000 to nearly 500 fans who were affected. The team settled similar suits with Maryland in 2022 and the District of Columbia in 2023.
“Our investigation found that the Commanders’ prior ownership unlawfully retained security deposits for years after they should have been returned to consumers,” Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares said. “I thank the team’s current ownership for cooperating with this investigation, and for working toward rectifying the consumer harm we identified.”
Dan Snyder owned the team at the time. A group led by Josh Harris bought the Commanders last year for a North American professional sports record $6.05 billion.
“We are pleased that this settlement has been reached resolving issues that occurred under prior ownership,” the Commanders said in a statement.
Along with the $600,000, the team agreed to pay $600,000 in civil penalties and another $100,000 for attorneys fees and other costs involved in the investigation, which launched in 2022.
Fighting breaks out between Turkey and Georgia fans inside stadium
DORTMUND, Germany | Fighting broke out between fans of Turkey and Georgia inside Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion ahead of the teams’ European Championship match on Tuesday.
The brawling took place at ground level in one corner of the stadium, with supporters seen throwing punches and objects at each other as security attempted to intervene in pouring rain.
The fighting stopped when police officers in riot gear came between them. A thick line of officers remained in place, with some standing in the stairwell alongside Georgia fans.
The nations, which are meeting in Group F of Euro 2024, share a border of around 270 kilometers (170 miles). There had been no sign of any disorder earlier in the day as both sets of fans mixed in Dortmund’s city center.
Driving rain forced fans with seats in lower levels of the stadium to take cover. Some fan zones around Germany are not opening Tuesday because of the forecast inclement weather.
It is Georgia’s first ever match at a major soccer tournament.
Novak Djokovic is confirmed for Paris Games, Serbian Olympic Committee says
LONDON | Novak Djokovic will compete in the upcoming Paris Games, the Serbian Olympic Committee confirmed on Tuesday.
Djokovic had knee surgery after withdrawing from the French Open ahead of the quarterfinals and said he hoped to return to competition “as soon as possible.”
The Serbian committee said in its announcement that Djokovic had confirmed he will play in Paris. It will be his fifth Olympics.
The 37-year-old Djokovic had said surgery on his right knee “went well.”
The tennis events for the Paris Olympics start on July 27 at Roland Garros, the site of the French Open.
It was unclear if Djokovic will be ready to play at Wimbledon, where he has won seven of his 24 Grand Slam titles. That grass-court major begins on July 1.
Djokovic has only won a bronze medal at the Olympics. That came in his first games — Beijing in 2008.
—From AP reports
