Should Questec results be public knowledge?

Question

Questec is the electronic strike zone. It can tell if an umpire should call a strike or ball. The umpire's union has fought fiercely to keep this info private but why. Hitters' batting averages are public, pitch counts are public, fielding errors and fpct are published. Why can't an umpire's accuracy be public knowledge. Good umpires should have nothing to fear, an occasional minor misjudgement is part of the game, only the few poor umpires would be exposed.

Answer 1

While the second answer said that the strike zone is subjective, I'd argue that such a view is part of the problem with umpires. The strike zone is very clearly defined in the MLB rulebook, and it should be applied as objectively as possible.

To me, there's a difference between an umpire making a bad ball/strike call on occasion versus an umpire who simply has their own strike zone. Some will be known, for example, for giving a pitcher an inch or two off the plate, while others will call the high strike. To me, this is the problem - the rule is IN THE BOOKS, and it should be applied evenly by all umpires. A missed call? Not a big deal. Changing the rules to whatever suits an individual umpire? A huge deal!

I believe that Questec results should be public knowledge, and that umpires should be evaluated on how closely they conform to calling the actual strike zone. If I'm a major league team, it would certainly help to know what kind of strike zone to expect from certain umps, and Questec results would help with that. Umpires are shielded enough from criticism as it is, and this is another example of them trying to insulate themselves against acknowledging mistakes.

No sport has perfect officiating. I've officiated several sports, and I do have sympathy. However, there is nothing like the ball/strike issue in any sport that has such an impact while being applied so subjectively. An umpire's strike zone will make or break a game much more than letting some neutral zone interference slide in hockey, or allowing a bit of contact between a receiver and a defensive back. By calling the strike zone they each favor, umpires are cheating the game and its fans.

Answer 2

I don't think releasing this information is a problem, but umpires shouldn't be judged on by how high or low their percentage is. When they are behind the plate calling strikes and balls they have to react in an instant to see if the ball was in the strike zone. From experience its not an easy job.

What should be done though is more research about this. What pitches do umpires have problems with? Some umpires will get left handed curve balls wrong more often than not. From there, MLB and the Umpires Union can work on each umpires individual weakness to make them more well rounded. In the long run this will make all umpires more efficient.

Answer 3

The strike zone is subjective. Some umpires call the strike zone differently. That said they do make mistakes. It's not an easy job and seeing pitches in slow motion makes it pretty easy to tell what is a strike and what isn't. I don't really care if Questec is shown or not. Even the best umpires miss calls. Thats baseball.

Answer 4

The umpire's union are a bunch of scumbags. Way too powerful, and the announcers are spinless. They have that graphic that shows you plain and simple if it was a good call or not, yet you rarely hear them contradict the umpire. I don't think the boxes you see in the broadcasts are Questec. I'm pretty sure they have drawn the ball inside the zone when it was obviously out in the past just to kiss some umpire ****.

Answer 5

Questec should be out of baseball, as well as any dreams of having a replay system. MLB umpires are the most accurate out of any sports officiating crews. the are somewhere in the 97-99 percentile its crazy and that is including balls and strikes

Answer 6

yes