Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani began the 2023 season with a twist: calling his own pitches through a PitchCom device hidden underneath his jersey near his left shoulder.
Ohtani's decision to call his own game is directly related to the pitch clock.
"Shohei's got so many pitches he can throw," Angels manager Phil Nevin said before Thursday night's season opener against the A's in Oakland, California. "So for him to go through 'em and shake and shake and shake -- time's running out because that thing doesn't say it quick enough sometimes.