Two Sundays back, Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Kiké Hernández seemingly gave away the game when his PitchCom device could be heard announcing pitches while he spoke with ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball crew.
This past Sunday, ESPN decided to give viewers a tutorial on how PitchCom works and what exactly was happening during that interview.
During the 4th inning of action between the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers, announcer Karl Ravech and analysts Eduardo Pérez and David Cone offered up an explainer on how PitchCom works, who can hear the pitch calls, and why the batter can’t. Cone also shared that he wished you could change the voice the same way you can for GPS devices, and he had a very specific option in mind.
Karl Ravech, Eduardo Pérez, and David Cone broke down how PitchCom works on “Sunday Night Baseball” (1/2): pic.twitter.com/tb0ioVjmgA
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 8, 2024
Pérez added that you can also adjust what PitchCom says if the pitcher speaks Spanish or Japanese.
Cone then attempted to use PitchCom to predict some pitches, though it did not go well (then again, that’s probably not the point).
David Cone’s attempt to use PitchCom to predict pitches does not go well (2/2). pic.twitter.com/3v0mvyfV6K
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 8, 2024
While much fun was had, it ended up being a particularly helpful segment for viewers at home. Those who were left confused by PitchCom’s voice last week got an understanding of what was happening, and everyone else got to see how the system works and why it’s beneficial.
Plus, we found out there’s a secret Tony Pérez button on there somewhere.
