Dave Portnoy Forced to Change Stance on MLB’s ABS System After Umpiring Woes Laid Bare

The Automated Ball-Strike Challenge System has attracted a lot of heat since it was introduced in the 2026 spring training, and Dave Portnoy was one of them. The number of strict rules has not sat well with many players, while its strategic mismanagement has frustrated some diehard fans. Now the former owner of Barstool Sports has offered a clear take on the ABS. 

However, Dave Portnoy has taken a U-turn as revealed in an interview with his former media house discussing the use and importance of ABS. He didn’t mince his words when he admitted, “I love it. I sat here earlier saying I would not like it, and I don’t want it, and now I love it.” 

And who changed his mind? Christopher Blake Bucknor, a veteran umpire with 26 years of experience. 

The Boston Red Sox were visiting the Cincinnati Reds on March 28 for their second game of the season. The Red Sox suffered a 5-6 loss at the Great American Ball Park, but that wasn’t the highlight of the game; it was the ABS system, which was used 8 times during the game, and Bucknor’s calls were overturned 6 times. 

The Reds were corrected 5 out of 5 times with their challenges. And the most notable part came with Eugenio Suarez at home plate. Ryan Watson was pitching at 1-2, and as the ball went past Suarez, Bucknor called it the third strike from behind the plate. The slugger tapped his helmet as the system stepped in and overturned the call. 

But that wasn’t the end of it. What the fans experienced on the next pitch felt like an action replay of the previous one. Suarez was rung up again, and the ump’s call was overturned. Again. 

“Now the Reds were like five for five with C.B. Buckner,” Portnoy said. “He’s missing a million.”

"This is going to determine baseball games all season… I love it, I thought I'd hate it but you need to save these until the end of the game." – @stoolpresidente on ABS challenges pic.twitter.com/M8mO6Z8jeb

— Wake Up Barstool (@wakeupbarstool) March 30, 2026

Such back-to-back mistakes and the ABS’s overall impact on the game made the Barstool Sports founder realize how wrong he was about the system. But on-field umpires being wrong is news only to Portnoy, not to those who have been following the games since the 2026 spring training. 

During those games, umpire calls were challenged 1,844 times. And they were found to have made mistakes in 976 of them. According to Baseball Savant, the 53% overturn rate hasn’t improved in the regular season. As of March 31, the rate stands at 54%, with 94 out of 175 calls having been overturned.

Dave Portnoy now understands that every borderline pitch can be reviewed, making the game all the more intense. And he is happy to flip his own stance about ABS. But his support for the system comes with a stern warning.

Dave Portnoy thinks ABS will determine the games only if you play them smart

Portnoy is a diehard Red Sox fan, and he has pledged to bet on every single game for Boston. Unfortunately, his team suffered its first loss of the season on Saturday. But that was not the most disappointing part for Dave. 

He was quite frustrated about how the Red Sox failed to utilize the challenges. They opposed the calls three times in that game and won only one. 

Carlos Narváez used up the first challenge for Boston. He was trying to turn a ball call to a strike in the second inning. Roman Anthony went for the second challenge in the 3rd when he was batting at 2-1. It was successful. But he went for it again in the next pitch. This time, the ump’s call was upheld. It was 3-2, and Anthony was struck out looking on the next pitch. 

This was a strategic failure, and Roman Anthony later took responsibility for his aggression, deeming the challenge at 3-1 not really necessary. Especially when Boston was leading the game 3-0. Portnoy bluntly criticized the slugger for using up all the challenges at the top of the third inning. 

“This is going to determine baseball games all season, and a big part of it is going to be who is using it correctly at the end of the game,” he said. 

It is never easy to watch your team lose. And wasting the strategic advantages that early in the game is really painful. Portnoy later joked that he now understands why Frank “The Tank” Fleming is always ranting. Fleming is one of the most passionate fans who is known for his over-the-top emotional takes on the games. He basically represents every diehard, and Portnoy just realized how he feels each time. 

Dave Portnoy just had a real-time example of how important  ABS is for MLB. As the season progresses, more instances could be seen, and it will be interesting to see how teams, players, and even umpires adapt to it.

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