Mariners hitters are screwing themselves by dropping the ball on ABS challenges

So, you want to know how many ABS challenges Seattle Mariners hitters have issued through the first six games of the 2026 season. The answer is three. Just three.

There are 19 teams that have made at least four ABS challenges from the offensive side, with the New York Yankees leading with 10. Heck, former Mariner Eugenio Suárez made two challenges in the span of two pitches on Saturday, much to the delight of the crowd at Great American Ball Park.

It would be one thing if Mariners hitters weren't using the ABS because they've lacked good excuses to do so. Yet we've known since Opening Day that this isn't the case, and it's not getting any better.

Mariners are leaving better results on the table by not using the ABS system

Through Tuesday, Mariners hitters have had 15 pitches called strikes against them despite being outside the strike zone. That's 15 pitches that hypothetically could have turned into balls, including a league-high five called third strikes.

Cal Raleigh not challenging a called third strike in the eighth inning of a one-run game on Thursday is the most egregious example. Rob Refnsyder waiting too long to issue a challenge on Tuesday is another.

Also, don't overlook the one that Victor Robles took in the second inning against the Yankees on Monday. Had he challenged, he would have been in a 3-2 count with two on and nobody out. As it was, he was the first out in what only ended up being a one-run inning.

What made that even more frustrating was how the Yankees went 5-for-5 on challenges against home-plate umpire Mike Estabrook on Monday. José Caballero even won two in the same plate appearance, turning a strikeout into a walk as a result.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone has said he was "obsessive" over the ABS during spring training, and Aaron Judge thinks the team had "too many meetings" about it. But all that preparation is paying off. For the season, Yankees hitters are 8-for-10 in challenges.

From how Dan Wilson has talked about the ABS, you'd swear that the Mariners didn't have any meetings about it during spring training. Indeed, this quote from Thursday is mind-boggling: “It is new obviously for everybody, and I think maybe it doesn’t jump to the forefront of the mind all the time when you’re in the box."

It is definitely new, but it was Wilson's job to get everyone ready for it. The Mariners needed to have a detailed plan for who could challenge and when, and it needed to be ready for action on Day 1.

Such a plan surely does exist, but Mariners hitters acting as if it doesn't isn't just a bad look. It's a competitive disadvantage, and one that needed to be cleaned up yesterday.