MLB restricts dugout iPad use
MLB notes
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NEW YORK -- Major League Baseball is restricting iPad usage in dugouts to prevent the tablets from running artificial intelligence to help make strategy decisions, and former reliever Adam Ottavino said the New York Mets' use of technology helped prompt the move.
The tablets have access to video and league-provided data, and also included a custom tab where teams could access other programs. MLB made the custom tabs inaccessible to teams starting Wednesday night, when the second half of the season started.
"In many cases, the custom tab had expanded the use of the dugout iPads beyond their originally intended purpose to include recommendations regarding substitutions, pitch calling, and other in-game decisions traditionally made by players and coaches," MLB executive vice president of baseball operations Morgan Sword wrote in a June 11 memo to general managers, assistant GMs and video coordinators.
The memo, first reported by The Athletic, was obtained by The Associated Press.
"I read the article and I was like, I can't believe what I'm seeing. Teams are making decisions off of AI? Man, that's just crazy," Yankees captain Aaron Judge said.
Ottavino said on his YouTube livestream "Baseball & Coffee" that the Mets had been using AI and cited spending by team owner Steve Cohen on the software. Ottavino pitched for the Mets from 2022-24 and is now a broadcaster on the New York Yankees' YES Network.
"The Mets were actually the team, the main team, that got cracked down on," Ottavino said. "They had an AI program that was very expensive apparently and they were bragging about it a little bit early on in this -- the year. Some of the coaches that I know were talking about it from around the league and they had basically an AI program helping them pick pitches and I think some other stuff."
"But MLB got wind of it and nipped that right in the bud, so apparently they weren't the only team, but I knew about it from the Mets angle," he said. "They tried to throw some money at the situation. Steve ponied up for -- I think this program from what I heard was several hundred thousand dollars to have."
The Mets did not comment when asked whether they had a response.
Ohtani has injection
NEW YORK -- Shohei Ohtani had a lubricant injected into his left knee, but the Dodgers two-way star did not have fluid drained, Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts said Friday.
Ohtani was in the starting lineup leading off as the designated hitter in Friday's second-half opener against the New York Yankees. The four-time MVP is not slated to pitch this weekend and likely will make his next start Wednesday at Philadelphia.
Roberts said Ohtani had the procedure after Sunday's game against Arizona. Ohtani last pitched on July 3.
"It gives him some relief in his knee, which we were hoping to get, and then the four days off from activity, which gets it all to kind of settle in," Roberts said. "I think we are certainly more prepared to back off on the workload if it calls for it, but Shohei wants to be out there as much as he possibly can."
Ohtani is batting .293 with 22 homers and 58 RBIs while going 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 85ª innings over 14 starts on the mound. The four-time MVP skipped Tuesday night's All-Star Game.
"Part of his wear and tear, just part of being an athlete, being a baseball player, the running, the pitching, the swinging of the bat, all that stuff has effects on the body," Roberts said.
He will try to give Ohtani days off after his pitching starts if possible.
Judge still not cleared
NEW YORK -- Aaron Judge's broken rib has not completely healed, and the New York Yankees captain still hasn't been cleared to resume baseball activities.
Judge hasn't played since May 31 because of the stress fracture in his right ribs. He had a scan during the All-Star break and called the result positive news.
"Part of it's healing. The other part of its still trying to bridge together," the three-time AL MVP said before the Yankees started the second half Friday night against the two-time World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
Judge and the Yankees were waiting for an evaluation of the scans from Dr. Gregory J. Pearl, chair of the department of vascular surgery at Baylor Hamilton Heart and Vascular Hospital in Texas. Judge will need another scan before he is cleared for baseball activities and given a time frame for a return.
"I'm going to wait for the doctors to kind of tell us what to do and what they see when they look at it," Judge said. "We got a big team of guys looking at this just so we get the best answer and have the right plan."
Rooker out for season
WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Athletics designated hitter and outfielder Brent Rooker had season-ending left knee surgery Friday, a tough loss of a leader both on and off the field for the club.
The team expects him to return in time for the start of spring training next year.
Dr. Tim McAdams and Dr. Mike Freehill performed the debridement procedure of Rooker's articular cartilage tear at Stanford Orthopedic Hospital in Redwood City and also removed loose bodies.