Fever BaseballFor collectors and stat nerdsFuture Value Radar (FVR) · On the record
Blue Notes · Umpire Grade2026-09-02

CWS @ HOU

Home plate: Dan Merzel

Off the corner was close enough tonight.

B+
Umpire Grade
93.7% accurate
0.4
Run Favor
runs, HOU
3
ABS Overturns
of 6 reviewed

What this shows — how Dan Merzel called the 127 pitches that were taken (no swing), graded against the tracked rulebook strike zone. He got 119 right. Below, only his misses are plotted, alongside every pitch the ABS (Automated Ball-Strike System) reviewed on a challenge.

The zone, as he called it

Challenge 1: Christian Vázquez — the ump called it a ball, the robot ruled strike (OVERTURNED — ump overruled).1Challenge 2: Tristan Peters — the ump called it a strike, the robot ruled ball (OVERTURNED — ump overruled).2Challenge 3: Jeremy Peña — the ump called it a strike, the robot ruled strike (upheld — ump confirmed).3Challenge 4: Drew Romo — the ump called it a ball, the robot ruled ball (upheld — ump confirmed).4Challenge 5: Christian Walker — the ump called it a strike, the robot ruled strike (upheld — ump confirmed).5Challenge 6: Randal Grichuk — the ump called it a strike, the robot ruled ball (OVERTURNED — ump overruled).6
strike called ballball called strikeABS overturnedABS upheld

The calls that moved the game

  1. 1-0.399 · 2-2 ball called strike· challenged
    Randal Grichuk vs Josh Hader
  2. 2-0.133 · 1-0 ball called strike
    LaMonte Wade Jr. vs Davis Martin
  3. 3+0.101 · 0-1 strike called ball· challenged
    Miguel Vargas vs Hayden Wesneski

Run impact from the count run-value table: a missed strike three is worth far more than one on 3-0.

ABS — the Automated Ball-Strike System

6 pitches went to the robots · 3 overturned (ump overruled) · 3 upheld (ump confirmed). This is the ABS system’s own measurement — Hawk-Eye optical ball-tracking, not our model.

  1. 1Christian Vázquez — ump said ball, robot ruled strike: overturned.
  2. 2Tristan Peters — ump said strike, robot ruled ball: overturned.
  3. 3Jeremy Peña — ump said strike, robot ruled strike: upheld.
  4. 4Drew Romo — ump said ball, robot ruled ball: upheld.
  5. 5Christian Walker — ump said strike, robot ruled strike: upheld.
  6. 6Randal Grichuk — ump said strike, robot ruled ball: overturned.

Our tracked-rulebook zone matched the ABS ruling on 6 of 6 — a zone-definition gap (ABS grades a standardized, height-based zone), not our error.

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