It's a brand-new day for MLB teams, players and fans: The ABS challenge system -- which was tested in spring training and the All-Star Game last year -- is coming full-time to the game in 2026!
That's right! Hitters and pitchers will be able to challenge umpires' ball and strike calls with replays starting this year, so we've already seen some use in early spring training games.
That included what might already be the best challenge of the year, courtesy of Willy Adames. The San Francisco Giants shortstop challenged a third strike call... and replay showed he was right by LESS THAN 0.1 INCHES!
Willy Adames won a challenge by 0.1 of an inch pic.twitter.com/2wq2WKmf4D
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) February 22, 2026
Willy Adames might have already locked up Challenge of the Year 😳 pic.twitter.com/2B1AugjBzd
— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) February 22, 2026
How did he do that? WILD. Further proof that the ABS challenge system is going to be awesome.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Willy Adames wins ABS challenge by less than 0.1 inch