Red Sox pitcher rails against 'terrible' ABS system after rough rehab start

Boston Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta is currently on the injured list but made a rehab start at Triple-A Worcester on Thursday.

The start didn't go as planned for Pivetta, partially because of his experience with the automatic ball and strike system that is being used in the minor leagues, but also because he allowed four walks.

Many around the game have argued in favor of the ABS system, as umpires seem to be less accurate as time goes on. However, it doesn't appear to be helping much in the minor leagues.

After his start, Pivetta revealed his thoughts on the ABS system and didn't hold back.

"I hate it. It's terrible. Hopefully it never comes to baseball," Pivetta said. "I think the challenge system is fine, but the strike zone is just weird. It doesn't fit. It doesn't match baseball."

Nick Pivetta reveals true thoughts on ABS system

Pivetta didn't hold back when giving his assessment of the ABS system. Clearly it isn't working the way many around the game expected it would, which could be an incentive not to bring it to the majors.

Umpiring has seemingly gotten worse over the years, but it appears that the ABS system isn't exactly a good substitute for bad calls made by umpires. Perhaps some tweaking is in order to ensure that it can be used properly in games.

As of now, it doesn't appear to be working out too well, and Pivetta got to experience that firsthand yesterday in his rehab start. Pivetta also made perfectly clear that there need to be some major changes before this is used in the majors.

The 31-year-old has started just two games for the Red Sox this year, going 1-1 with an ERA of 0.82 over 11 innings of work. He is currently on the injured list with a right elbow flexor strain.

On a more positive note, Pivetta feels confident about the steps he took in his rehab start despite it not going as planned.

"Just continue to be healthy and we'll see where I go from there," he said.