MLB spring training is an annual event in Major League Baseball where teams prepare for the regular season by holding practice sessions, exhibition games, and workouts. It takes place every year in February and March, typically either in Florida or Arizona.
During spring training, teams use this time to evaluate their players, to give rookies and underplayed players opportunities to showcase their skills and get in shape for the season. The games are often a bit more relaxed than regular-season games, but they still provide a glimpse of what’s to come in the Summer.
The MLB as an organization also uses this time to test out new functions or features for the game, with this year adding a “Robot Umpire” known as the ABS system. The ABS system uses AI to recognize whether a pitch is within the strike zone, sparking an argument amongst MLB fans.
MLB Fans at Georgia College explored their opinions on the inclusion of the ABS system into regular season games, and if the human umpires should be eventually phased out in favor of the ABS system.
“It should not,” said Ryan Brewer, a senior criminal justice major. “So when I played, I was a catcher and one of the biggest things the catcher can do right is pitch framing. Pitch framing is when you make a pitch look like a ball when it was actually a strike, and if you use robotic umpires you take away one of the biggest skills a catcher can have.”
Other GCSU students argued against Brewer’s perspective, arguing that baseball should change with the times, and welcome new innovations.
“With the digital age, pitch framing shouldn’t be something you look at,” said Joeseph Richmond, a senior political science major. “If you get bad calls, fans will start to cause riots in the stands, they throw stuff at the umpires, hitters will get thrown out of the game for arguing with the Umpire over decisions, so if the ABS system were implemented that might happen less.”
As Baseball evolves pitch framing has become a more crucial part of a catcher’s overall skill set. Much like catching signals, pitch framing is a skill that fans may not always notice, but it is a key part of modern baseball strategy, especially in the complicated dynamic between the pitcher and the catcher.
In the past, catchers were mostly judged based on their ability to throw runners out. Now, pitch framing has become a crucial skill, and baseball clubs increasingly value catchers who can earn extra strikes for pitchers. This means teams might prioritize catchers who are excellent at framing, even if their offense isn’t as strong.
“There are guys in baseball who get paid for pitch framing,” Brewer said. “For example, Alejandro Kirk on the Blue Jays, Patrick Bailey on the Giants – these guys are the best pitch framers in baseball and they get paid for such. So if you take away that human/mental aspect, you take away from the entirety of the game.”
Moving away from the new technology introduced in 2025 spring training, rookies and new players are often the spotlight of the event, with clubs keeping a close eye on who can perform well with the team.
In MLB spring training, there are two main types of players: roster invites and non-roster invites. Both types of players attend spring training, but they have different statuses and roles within the organization.
Roster invites are players who are currently on the team’s 40-man roster, which includes already established major league players as well as some prospects who are expected to be on the team’s roster in the summer.
Non-roster invites are players who are not on the team’s current 40-man roster but are invited to play in spring training regardless. These players will compete for an open spot on the team’s roster and are typically in the limelight during training. One of the main goals for spring training is to have an opportunity to evaluate these players, as well as give established players a proper place to condition themselves for next season.
Spring training is a crucial part of the MLB’s longevity and success in future seasons and works to captivate audiences during the off-season. While it is mainly for the conditioning of pro league players and the scouting of new talent, spring training has also proven to add controversy, as the decisions made within spring training can dictate a team’s performance in the regular season.