Major League Baseball has switched off a feature on dugout iPads that some teams were using to get artificial intelligence advice during games. Clubs lost access to the tablets’ custom tab on Wednesday night, when the second half of the season began.
The iPads still carry video and league-provided data. The custom tab was where teams could open other programs. In a June 11 memo to general managers, assistant GMs and video coordinators, MLB executive vice president of baseball operations Morgan Sword explained why it had to go. “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,” he wrote.
The memo was first reported by The Athletic and obtained by The Associated Press.
Sword said a competition committee review found clubs had followed the regulations. Starting the ban with the second half was meant to give teams that leaned on the tab “appropriate lead-time to make any necessary adjustments.”
A short history of iPads in the dugout
MLB began a pilot in late 2015 that let teams use iPads in dugouts with restrictions. It expanded their use in 2016 under a deal with Apple. Video access was eliminated in the 2020 COVID season after the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal, then returned in 2021.
