Robot Umpires to Reportedly Debut in Some Minor League Stadiums in 2020

The old unsolvable problem has reared its ugly head again: MLB's umpires have made some brutal and highly public incorrect calls lately, but...are unthinking, unfeeling robots really any better for the game?

The technology is imperfect. It's unstable. And it's...well, it's freaking coming.

Per Commissioner Rob Manfred, the robo-umps are making their way to select affiliated minor league ballparks in 2020, even as they still continue to work out various kinks.

After experimenting in the independent Atlantic League this past summer, then taking their tech to the MLB-affiliated Arizona Fall League, chock full of the league's top prospects, it's clear there's a long way to go before this can accurately simulate proper context.

But, that's not stopping Manfred from running with it.

“Here’s our thinking on the automated strike zone: The technology exists. We have the technology. We’re actually going through a big upgrade of that piece of our technology during this offseason. I think we need to be ready to use an automated strike zone when the time is right,” Manfred told MLB Network host Brian Kenny this week.

It's coming. It's inevitable. Let's just make sure the robot umpires aren't using an Angel Hernandez model the first time we see them in a big league game.