The Giants have struggled both on the mound and at the plate throughout the 2026 MLB season, and that includes adapting to one new rule that impacts both.
MLB’s new ABS (Automated Ball-Strike) Challenge System, which was fully implemented at the major-league level this season, has not benefited San Francisco (42-58) as much as it might have hoped.
The Giants, through 100 games, and entering Tuesday’s matchup against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium, have, according to Baseball Savant, won 47 of their 99 total challenges (47 percent) at the plate this season, which is tied with the Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago White Sox for the eighth-lowest success rate in the league. San Francisco hitters also challenge calls at the plate 4.5 percent of the time, which is the 10th-lowest frequency.
San Francisco hitters have prevented a total of 13 strikeouts while gaining eight walks from challenges at the plate.
Among the teams with the highest ABS challenge success rate at the plate are the Houston Astros (61 percent) and Arizona Diamondbacks (57 percent), while the Cleveland Guardians (38 percent) and Atlanta Braves (35 percent) occupy the bottom two spots, respectively.
On the mound and behind the plate, with pitchers and catchers being the only positions that can challenge pitches on defense, the Giants have won 47 of their 93 total challenges (51 percent), which is tied with the Baltimore Orioles for the fifth-lowest percentage in the league. San Francisco also challenges calls 1.8 percent of the time, which also is the fifth-lowest frequency.
The Giants’ pitchers and catchers have gained eight strikeouts from challenges, while eliminating five walks.
San Francisco has struggled mightily this season, for a variety of reasons, and while its lackluster ABS Challenge System performance might not be a key reason as to why, it doesn’t help the free-falling Giants that they aren’t benefiting more from those small advantages they can gain on the mound and at the plate.