PARADISE VALLEY, Ariz., Jan. 16 (UPI) -- The teams that comprise Major League Baseball Thursday unanimously approved the expansion of the use of instant replay beginning in the upcoming season.
MLB said the vote took place during baseball's quarterly owners' meeting this week in Arizona. The Major League Baseball Players Association and the World Umpires Association had consented to proposed new protocols for instant replay use on certain plays.
The type of plays that may be challenged for review are: home runs, ground-rule doubles, fan interference, stadium boundary calls (such as a fielder falling into the stands), force plays (except fielder's touching second base on a potential double play), tap plays, fair or foul call down the outfield lines and trapped balls in the outfield, hit by pitch, whether a runner scores a run before a third out, appeals of touching a base, passing runners, and record keeping such as ball-strike count, outs, score and substitutions.
A position near home plate will be set up in all MLB parks where umpires will have contact with the Replay Command Center in New York. That center is to be staffed by major-league umpires, who will determine whether a call is to be upheld or overturned "based on the continuing stand of whether there is clear and convincing evidence," MLB said in a release.
"I am very pleased that instant replay will expand to include additional impactful plays," MLB Commissioner Bud Selig said. "The new system will give managers valuable recourse in potentially game-changing situations. The opportunity for our fans to see more replays in our ballparks is also an important modification that the clubs and I favored. "
MLB managers will have one challenge per game but if any portion of the challenged play is overturned, the manager will be able to challenge one other call. No manager may challenge more than two plays in a game.
After the beginning of the seventh inning the umpire crew chief may ask for a review of a play.
