High school baseball coaches can use electronic devices to call pitches starting in 2024

The Orange County Great Park Stadium hosts a number of high school games each year. (Photo: Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone).

Orange County high school baseball coaches and coaches around the country will have a different method of calling pitches beginning in 2024 under a new rule announced Thursday by the National Federation of High Schools.

Rather than relaying signs to catchers who then give the signs to the pitchers, the head coach will be able to use a one-way electronic communication device with the catcher for the purposes of calling a pitch, the NFHS announced in a release. Officials with the organization did not specify what kind of electronic devices could be used.

“We did a study this fall and winter,” said JSerra Coach Brett Kay, who led the Lions to the CIF Division 1 title last season.

Kay said the study showed the games were 22 minutes faster.

“It is helping the pace of play predicated on how fast or slow the game goes etc.,” he said. “It will take some severe getting used to for those like me that love to call signs and feel the game out. But it is pretty cool.” 

Woodbridge baseball coach Ryan Brucker added:

“Being able to use an electronic communication system will be a good thing for high school baseball. From what I have read it helps to speed up the game because coaches don’t have to go through a sign system, or number sequence to call pitches. It looks like the systems are relatively inexpensive so they will be available for all levels. Anything that helps to keep the pace of play moving is a positive thing.”  

Crean Lutheran baseball coach Jake Haney added:

“I don’t think it will change things too much. It will certainly speed the game up which I don’t really think is an issue in high school baseball. The game only gets slow when pitchers don’t throw strikes or teams don’t play defense. But maybe games going faster will allow us to push start times back so that kids can stay in class longer. Also, with the daylight savings law never actually being implemented maybe it would help with all the ties we have been seeing the last couple of years.”

Coaches are prohibited from communicating with any other player besides the catcher on defense and with any batter hitting. Also, the coach must be in the dugout when using the communication device.

“This change is consistent with the growth of the game and is indicative of a measured and responsible approach to enable technology into our level of competition,” said Elliot Hopkins, NFHS Director of Sports and Educational Services and liaison to the Baseball Rules Committee.

“The committee has made these changes to maintain the balance between offense and defense, increase the pace of play and will responsibly manage technology so there is no advantage gained by schools that have more resources than some of their contemporaries.”

A complete listing of the rules changes will be available later on the organization’s website: www.nfhs.org.

—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com