MLB will allow pitchers and catchers the option of using a new signalling technology that was tested in spring training games, according to Buster Olney.
The system, which Olney says those in the industry refer to as “PitchCom,” allows catchers to push buttons on a pad strapped to their wrist to call a pitch. That sign is then heard by the pitcher through a speaker in the pitcher’s cap. The mechanism is designed to allow teams to avoid the potential of opponent’s stealing signs, whether illegally — as the Astros did — or legally, when a runner is at second base and is able to decipher the signs and relay it to the hitter.