Major League Baseball and the Players’ Association have approved the expanded use of instant replay for the 2014 season. From today’s press release:
… Managers will have at least one challenge to use. If any portion of a challenged play is overturned, then the manager who challenged the play will retain the ability to challenge one more play during the game. No manager may challenge more than two plays in a game. Once the manager has exhausted his ability to challenge plays during the game and after the beginning of the seventh inning, the Crew Chief may choose to invoke instant replay on any reviewable call. Home run and other boundary calls will remain reviewable under the procedures in place last season.
A designated communication location near home plate will be established at all 30 MLB ballparks. There, the Crew Chief and at least one other Major League Umpire will have access to a hard-wired headset connected to the Replay Command Center, which will remain at MLB Advanced Media headquarters in New York. Major League Umpires will be staffed as Replay Officials at the Replay Command Center. After viewing video feeds, the Replay Official will make the ultimate determination of whether to overturn the call, based on the continuing standard of whether there is clear and convincing evidence.
Instant replay will be utilized during some televised games in Spring Training for the purposes of educating on-field personnel on the rules of the new system. …
Two other notes of interest: As the fifth bullet point up top indicates, the neighborhood play at second base will not be subject to review. Also, teams will now have the right to show replays of all close plays on the ballpark scoreboard, regardless of whether the play is reviewed.
