ABS has arrived in college baseball. The Automated Ball-Strike challenge system we've come to know and love in MLB is being used in experimental basis in the SEC baseball tournament this year. The early results are just as entertaining as they were in MLB this spring.
The first challenge in college baseball history took place in the Missouri-Ole Miss game on Tuesday morning. The Tigers won 10-8 to eliminate the Rebels, but Ole Miss catcher Austin Fawley had the honor of tapping his helmet to initiate the first official challenge. After a 2-2 pitch in the top of the first inning was called a ball, Fawley challenged only to have the Hawk-Eye technology confirm the ball was more than two inches outside the strike zone. Whether it's the pitch location or the situation, there was really no justification for using a challenge at that point in the ballgame, and Fawley seemed to learn his lesson because he did not challenge any other pitches during the game.
