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ABS Challenges Seal Orioles Win, Prompt First Ejection Over New System

A tight timing window for challenges is creating immediate friction over when a player signals for review.

Overview

  • The Orioles, in the ninth on Sunday, used MLB’s new ball‑strike review to overturn two calls and close out an 8-6 win over the Twins.
  • During Josh Bell’s at-bat, Adley Rutschman flipped a 3-0 ball to a strike on challenge, then Ryan Helsley tapped his cap to review a 3-2 slider that became strike three by 0.3 inches.
  • Twins manager Derek Shelton argued the challenge came too late and was ejected by home-plate umpire Chris Segal in the first ABS-related dismissal of the season.
  • Minnesota had exhausted its two challenges after Matt Wallner’s failed appeal in the seventh, while Baltimore kept theirs alive because each challenge was upheld.
  • The ABS system uses Hawk‑Eye cameras to check a height‑based strike zone, gives each team two player‑initiated challenges, and returns an instant scoreboard ruling that can change late counts.