Pitch (baseball) - Signaling

Signaling

The responsibility for selecting the type of pitch was traditionally made by the catcher by relaying hand signals to the pitcher with the fingers, usually 1 finger for fastball and/or the pitchers best pitch, with the pitcher having the option to ask for another selection by shaking his head. However, current form is to have the manager or a coach relay the pitch selection to the catcher, via secret hand signals to prevent the opposing team from having the advantage of knowing what the next pitch will be. Starting pitchers typically throw more pitches than relievers.