When the 2026 Liga Mexicana de Beisbol season begins next week, don’t scratch your head when you see a batter, pitcher, or catcher tapping theirs.
That’s because the LMB will be using the Automatic Ball/Strike Challenge system instituted in Major League Baseball, allowing batters, pitchers, and catchers to immediately appeal a called ball or strike.
The system has already been tested during the LMB’s preseason games, with Julian Ornelas being the first batter to invoke an ABS Challenge, doing so on April 4. With Ornelas batting for the Diablos Rojos del Mexico in the top of the fourth against El Aguila de Veracruz, Veracruz catcher Jose Heberto Felix tapped his helmet after the 1-2 offering from Ricky Karcher was ruled to have been inside. A review of the pitch via the ABS system determined the pitch was in the strike zone, and Ornelas was called out on strikes.
¡Llegó la tecnología! ? Por primera vez en la historia de Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú, el Sistema ABS entra en acción durante un juego de los @DiablosRojosMX ??
El fallo: Ponche a Julián Ornelas en un pitcheo marcado bola y revocado a strike ☝️ pic.twitter.com/WBPEn5vUvz
— Irving Furlong ⚾ (@irvingrf) April 5, 2026
With the system in place, Diablos Rojos manager Lorenzo Bundy has a plan for how his team will use it. According to several media reports, Bundy won’t allow his pitchers to request an ABS review, leaving the decision to his catchers, and has told his catchers to only request a review when a runner is on base. Similarly, his batters will be told to request a review only when the Diablos have a runner on base.
“I think it’s something that can be beneficial at any time,” said Bundy following the April 4 game in a story on Milenio.com, a Mexican media outlet. “It’s interesting; I do like this challenge because it’s very quick. One pitch can change a game, the important thing is knowing when the exact moment is to request a review.”
Bundy’s catchers will likely be making the bulk of the Diablos’ appeals.
I really like that because umpires are human beings, they can make mistakes too , especially at key moments in the game that you can take advantage of,” said catcher Carlos Pérez in the same story. “It’s better to use it late in the game in a situation that warrants it. It’s going to be a lot of fun working with this new technology.”
The ABS Challenge system will debut in the LMB on April 16, when the Diablos Rojos host the Piratas de Campeche in the league’s opening game of the 2026 season at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu in Mexico City.
Photo: Veracruz catcher Jose Heberto Felix, shown here making a play at the plate, was the first to invoke the ABS Challenge system during the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol preseason. (Photo courtesy of the Diablos Rojos del Mexico)
