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Sports verified Verified Outcome TRL 9

Encrypted Player-to-Player Communication (PitchCom)

domain Client: Major League Baseball handshake Provider: PitchCom schedule Deploy: Q2 2022 (League-wide)
90 Impact
Enterprise Ready
Evidence Score: 5/10
Strength: Very High

Executive Summary

ANALYST: COI RESEARCH

Following high-profile sign-stealing scandals, the league approved a wrist-worn encrypted transmitter. Catchers press buttons to signal pitch type/location, which is converted to audio in the pitcher's hat receiver. This hardware solution eliminated visual hand signals, neutralizing video-based espionage and speeding up the pace of play.

rate_review Analyst Verdict

"A rare hardware intervention that solved a cultural crisis. It is a highly effective, low-latency analog to digital conversion of a century-old manual process. The adoption speed (nearly 100% in one season) highlights the acute pain of the problem (cheating/paranoia)."

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Full Audit Report Available Includes Risk Register, Technical Specs & Compliance Data.

warning The Challenge

Teams were using outfield cameras and sophisticated algorithms to decode the finger signals catchers used to call pitches, relaying this info to batters (e.g., the Houston Astros scandal). This created a paranoia that slowed down games as teams constantly changed sign sequences.

psychology The Solution

PitchCom uses a proprietary, encrypted radio signal (not standard Wi-Fi/Bluetooth to avoid hacking). The catcher wears a keypad band; the pitcher and fielders wear bone-conduction or in-hat audio receivers. The system speaks the pitch ('Fastball, High').

settings_suggest Technical & Deployment Specs

Integrations
None (Standalone)
Deployment Model
Hardware / IoT
Data Classification
Encrypted Audio
Estimated TCO / ROI
Low (Per device)
POC Summary (2022-02-01 to 2022-04-01)

"Spring Training 2022 testing."

shield Risk Register & Mitigation

Risk Factor Severity Mitigation Strategy
Signal Jamming Medium Proprietary frequency hopping; backup manual signs available.
Hardware Hacking High Strong encryption; devices controlled by league officials.

trending_up Impact Trajectory

Audited value realization curve

Reduction in average game time (pace of play) Verified Outcome
Primary KPI100% adoption rate by 30 clubs
Audit CycleElimination of 'cross-up' errors

policy Compliance & Gov

  • Standards: MLB Rules Committee
  • Maturity (TRL): 9
  • Evidence Score: 5/10
  • Data Class: Encrypted Audio

folder_shared Verified Assets

description
Verified Case Study
PDF • Version 1
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Technical Audit
PDF • Audited
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Security Architecture

The "Blind Verification" Protocol

How we verified these outcomes for Major League Baseball without exposing sensitive IP or identities.

Private
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1. Raw Evidence

Audit ID: #PRIV-782
Evidence: Direct SQL Logs
Public
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2. Verified Asset

Outcome: Verified
Ref ID: #COI-782

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