Stephen Vogt’s latest comments show unique advantage Guardians could have in 2026

There’s no denying the 2026 MLB season will look vastly different. While the structure of the sport will look exactly the same, batters, pitchers and catchers will have a new tool at their disposal in the form of the Automatic Ball-Strike Challenge System. 

The system, which has been in use in the minor leagues in previous years and was also used at spring training last season, allows for teams to request a challenge of a pitch for the first time in MLB history. 

If the batter, pitcher or catcher wants to challenge whether a pitch wasn’t a ball or strike, they just need to tap the top of their helmet and a replay of the pitch location will be shown on the video board. Each team will get two challenges, and will get to keep their challenges so long as they’re successful. 

That drastic change has led to plenty of conversations about how it could help (or harm) teams in 2026, and it’s fair to assume the Guardians have been the subject of many of those conversations. 

Not only do the Guardians have one of the best pitching factories in all of baseball, but they also have a pitching staff made up of guys who are known for their elite command of the strike zone. 

While missed calls have been a part of baseball since the dawn of the sport due to the human element of umpiring, this new system will act as a failsafe to make sure that calls can be as accurate as possible. 

At the Winter Meetings, Guardians manager Stephen Vogt spoke about the ABS Challenge System, and shined a bit of light about how the Guardians plan to use it. 

 “We haven't talked about it really in depth, but I would imagine that we will not have our pitchers challenging pitches,” Vogt said, per MLB.com’s Tim Stebbins. “Focus on making a pitch. Let the catcher make the decision.”

The Guardians are uniquely positions to take advantage of the new ABS system

That kind of thinking will likely become the norm across MLB, as almost every manager quoted in a recent ESPN story about the ABS Challenge System said they won’t be allowing their pitchers to challenge pitches. 

Luckily for the Guardians, they have one of the best defensive catchers in baseball in Austin Hedges (95th percentile in framing) along with Bo Naylor, who has slowly gotten better behind the plate since making his MLB debut. 

On the offensive side, Steven Kwan stands out as one of the top batters who could benefit from the system due to his unrivaled control of the strike zone. 

While Vogt told reporters that he’s planning on spending some time this spring helping some players on their roster develop a better understanding of the strike zone, Kwan’s already ahead of the curve. 

It’s clear the Guardians are building their 2026 club around pitching, so it’s easy to see how the ABS System could help them, and Vogt’s comments reinforce that idea.