CLEVELAND, Ohio — A seismic shift is coming to Major League Baseball in 2026, and few players will feel the tremors more intensely than Guardians catcher Austin Hedges. The Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) challenge system — baseball’s version of robot umpires — threatens to render obsolete the very skill that has kept Hedges employed despite his anemic offensive numbers.

“He’s going to be one of a sort of a dying breed with the advent of ABs,” explained Joe Noga on the Cleveland Baseball Talk Podcast . “Teams aren’t going to be looking much for catchers with that pitch framing ability that Hedgy has developed and perfected over the years. They’re going to need offensive players at the catching position and that’s going to be the premium now.”

For Hedges, who just secured another $4 million

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