MLB Owners and Players Officially Approve Expanded Replay for 2014 Season

Replay in Major League Baseball is officially set to expand for the 2014 season after owners and players both agreed on the new system, which will increase a manager's ability to challenge questionable calls.

Jon Morosi of Fox Sports reported the agreement was given final passage:

After the owners gave their approval of the new replay rules, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports passed along remarks from commissioner Bud Selig, who called more replay an adjustment for him:

Rosenthal also reported each manager would get two challenges per game in total instead of having a distinction between the early innings and late innings:

Although baseball has been traditionally slow to changes it ways, increasing the amount of replay in order to make sure fewer missed calls are allowed to impact an outcome was a no-brainer. The technology was available so it was time to change.

Joe Torre, who's the league's executive vice president of baseball operations, said the operation is going to take some getting used, especially for umpires stationed at the headquarters where the final decisions will be made, according to Paul Hagen of MLB.com.

"The one thing I've learned ... is that you really need practice looking at the video, and I think that's something we're all aware of," Torre said. "The umpires are really going to have to be educated on this."

MLB chief operating officer Rob Manfred said fans will also be able to watch highlights on the plays in question on the stadium video boards:

Letting fans, and players on the field for that matter, see disputed calls is a major positive. Too often when replays are shielded it lacks the transparency the league is trying to achieve by implementing reviews in the first place.

Now, the system should ensure the calls are made correctly and everybody can see it on the ever-growing video boards in stadiums. It will make it easier to move past a perceived bad call.

The only major issue that will be watched closely is time. Baseball doesn't want the pace of play to get any slower on a widespread basis, which is likely a key reason it limited challenges to two apiece, so the reviews have to be quick and correct.

Otherwise, the unanimous agreement from all parties shows baseball knew it was time to expand instant replay like other pro leagues have already done.

Now, there's a deal in place to get the system up and running for 2014.

 

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