Along with MLB looking to improve pace of play and grow the sport’s popularity over recent years, one area of concern that came to the forefront is sign stealing.
It of course was in the spotlight after Mike Fiers revealed the Houston Astros established an elaborate system to steal their opponents signs and relay them in live time en route to winning the 2017 World Series.
After multiple years of testing, MLB is allowing teams to use PitchCom to relay signs in effort to combat sign stealing, according to Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com:
MLB informed clubs in a memo today that it is moving forward with regular-season use of PitchCom — a wearable device that transmits signals from catcher to pitcher — in 2022. The technology, which will be optional, was approved by the MLB Players Association after receiving generally positive feedback in experimental usage at the Single-A level last year and in big league camps during Spring Training this year.
“They had watched from afar the issues baseball was grappling with and pitched us on applying their technology for our sport,” said Morgan Sword, MLB’s executive vice president of baseball operations. “They showed us a prototype that they developed, and we have worked with them over the last 12 months to refine that prototype and make it fit the needs of our pitchers and catchers.”
Once pitchers and catchers gain knowledge of PitchCom and its benefits, they might shift away from the traditional method of signaling by flashing fingers.
MLB and the MLBPA implemented harsh penalties in which players could be suspended for sign-stealing methods that go above the ‘unwritten rules.’
As recently as the 2020 season, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts addressed the topic and how the team was working themselves to combat other clubs decoding their signals, which included using multiple sets of signs and providing players with information cards.
The Dodgers are not among the teams that have their pitchers and catchers wearing the PitchCom devices.
Carlos Beltran admits Astros’ title is ‘stained’
The Dodgers had a magical season in 2017 that made them seem like the team of destiny with hopes to win the franchise’s first World Series since 1988.
L.A. defeated the Chicago Cubs in the National League Championship Series to put them just four wins away from a championship. It felt even closer to reality after Chris Taylor opened the first inning with a home run and the Dodgers went on to win Game 1 of the World Series.
After MLB conducted a three-month investigation into the Astros, commissioner Rob Manfred levied significant penalties against the organization, fining them $5 million, stripping them of their first and second-round draft picks over the next two seasons, and then-general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager AJ Hinch were each suspended for the entire 2020 season.
However, none of the players who took part in it were suspended, which caused many around the league to become upset with Manfred for setting a soft precedent for cheating.
And though several members of that Astros team seemingly defended their actions and dismissed the success of the sign stealing, Carlos Beltran recently acknowledged the title effectively has an asterisk.
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