New ABS could be why MLB games are lasting a little longer this year

It could be argued that the Automated Ball-Strike system has been the MVP of Major League Baseball through the season’s first 2 1/2 weeks, creating a game-within-the-game that’s producing winners, losers and some dramatic moments.

There appears to be at least one tradeoff.

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The robot umpires could be one of the factors making games a little longer this spring, with the time of a nine-inning game creeping upward to 2 hours, 42 minutes through Saturday, according to baseball-reference.com. That’s up from 2:38 last season and 2:36 in 2024.

The slightly longer games make sense. Even though an ABS challenge usually takes less than 15 seconds, the mini delays in the game can add up if several pitches are contested.

One of MLB’s big wins over the past decade is a rules package that debuted in 2023, which included a pitch clock that dramatically shortened games by roughly 25 minutes. Though there were scattered complaints about the changes, they’ve been widely viewed as a success.

The ABS system might be making a small dent in that progress, but game times are still considerable shorter than they were in the pre-pitch clock era. A nine-inning game lasted an average of 3:10 in 2021 — an all-time high.

Triple threat

Two-time All-Star Corbin Carroll is off to a good start again this season with a .327 batting average and 1.067 OPS, and the young star from Seattle’s Lakeside School has developed a signature play that’s increasingly rare in today’s game.

The triple.

The 25-year-old speedster leads the majors with three triples in just 14 games. He’s paced the big leagues in triples over the past two seasons with 17 of in 2025 and 14 in 2024.

The D-backs’ home of Chase Field has a been a perfect fit for Carroll, featuring a deep power alley in right-center that forces outfielders to cover a lot of ground while he motors around the bases.

Carroll is already sixth among active MLB players with 46 triples.

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