Nationals Catchers Give Bizarre Reasoning for Their Struggles With ABS Challenges

The Washington Nationals catchers think they know why they have struggled with ABS.

Washington Nationals catcher Keibert Ruiz | Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

A new wrinkle thrown at every Major League Baseball team ahead of the 2026 season was how to handle the ABS Challenge System that was set to be implemented.

Younger players had experience with it during their time in the minors since it was rolled out in 2022, and during spring training last year, established big leaguers were given their first taste of ABS. But since it was coming to the MLB full-time ahead of this season, the Washington Nationals drilled scenarios regarding when they might want to challenge a call made by the umpire.

Unfortunately, the Nationals have not had a lot of triumphs when it comes to their usage of the ABS Challenge System. Entering play on April 28, they have made 55 combined challenges as the batting and fielding team. They have won 21 of those for a success rate of 38%. And when asked about those struggles, Washington's catchers had an interesting reasoning for their issues.

Nationals Catchers Believe Improved Framing Has Hurt Their ABS Challenges

Washington Nationals catcher Drew Millas | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

According to Zack Meisel of The Athletic (subscription required), the improved framing numbers of Keibert Ruiz has caused the catcher to trick himself into thinking some balls are strikes, which has resulted in him making ill-advised challenges.

"If I catch it good, I think it's a strike sometimes," Ruiz stated.

Backup catcher Drew Millas concurred with his teammate, as he told Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic, "We're catching the ball almost better than anyone in baseball, so it's like everything feels great, and everything feels like a strike. I 100% agree with Keibert."

Based on framing numbers, Millas is correct. Per Baseball Savant, he is plus-two in Catcher Framing Runs, while Ruiz is plus-one. That puts them 11th and 16th amongst major league catchers, respectively, which is a huge step in the right direction when it comes to defense at that position compared to what it's been in the past.

Can Nationals Be Good at Framing and ABS Challenges?

Washington Nationals catcher Keibert Ruiz | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Ruiz and Millas could be right in their assessment that their improved framing has caused them to struggle when it comes to ABS challenges. But that leads to the question about whether or not this duo can improve their success rate on challenges while also being good at framing.

So far, the Nationals have made 31 challenges as the fielding team and have won 14 of them. That's a success rate of 45%, which is much better than what the offense is doing. Ideally, the pair just needs more reps behind the plate to get used to the ABS aspect of things so they can combine it with what they have been taught that's improved their framing numbers.