# Signs and Communication · Baseball Level 5: Upper-Intermediate

Baseball · Level 5: Upper-Intermediate · Insporta Book (https://book.insporta.app/baseball/level-5/signs-and-communication/)

The chain of signs, answering a sign, the plays a coach can call, positioning from the dugout, relay calls, talking in the outfield, language on the field, the sign-stealing scandal, talking to umpires, and the dugout and the bullpen phone.

## Test 1: The chain of signs

- The manager makes the call and passes it on. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The manager signals the coach, who relays it to the hitter and runners. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A long string of coach's signs is harder to steal than one from the dugout. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Each pitch may bring a new instruction. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Most touches are fake; only the live sign after the indicator counts. (Source: General baseball reference)
- New signs keep opponents from decoding them. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A quiet confirmation tells the coach the sign was seen. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Dugout, coach, runner, confirmation. (Source: General baseball reference)
- It starts with the manager and ends with the batter. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Managers signal plays to the coach, who passes them on. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 2: Answering a sign

- Batters touch the helmet or bat to say they saw the sign. (Source: General baseball reference)
- If the batter misses the squeeze, the runner can be tagged out at home. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Stepping out and looking again avoids a costly mix-up. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Rubbing off tells players the earlier sign is off. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Missed signs leave one player doing the play alone. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Everyone needs the same signs before the game. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Simple signs reduce mistakes, though they are easier to steal. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Both batter and runner confirm before the play goes. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Step out, ask again, confirm. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A touch of the helmet is a common return sign. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 3: The plays a coach can call

- Steal, bunt, hit-and-run and take are offensive signs. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A take sign asks the batter to let the pitch go. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The green light lets him swing at a good 3-0 pitch. (Source: General baseball reference)
- On a hit-and-run, the runner goes and the batter must swing. (Source: General baseball reference)
- On a safety squeeze, the runner breaks only once the bunt is down well. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A green light lets a good base stealer pick his own pitch. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Showing bunt can draw the corners in and open holes. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Two runners, one runner, then nobody. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The suicide squeeze commits the runner before the bunt. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Teams agree what silence or a clap means on 3-0. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 4: Positioning from the dugout

- Cards list where to stand against each hitter. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Coaches wave fielders into place by hand signals. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Spray charts show where each hitter usually hits the ball. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A wave in the right direction moves the fielder. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A pitcher may aim pitches where fielders are set up. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The shift ban keeps two infielders on each side of second, on the dirt. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Catchers often relay positioning and pickoff signs. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Card, wave, adjust, then the pitch. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Memory came first, charts later, data cards most recently. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Teams print a plan for every opposing batter. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 5: Relay calls

- 'Cut' means stop the throw and hold the ball. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The number in the call names the base to throw to. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Silence means the throw should go all the way. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The catcher sees the whole play in front of him. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A cut-off man must hear the call over the crowd. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Home is often called 'four', the fourth base. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Raised arms show the outfielder where to throw. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The catcher's call sends the ball to the better base. (Source: General baseball reference)
- 'Cut' holds it, 'cut two' redirects it, silence lets it through. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Pointing at second with 'cut two' sends the ball there. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 6: Talking in the outfield

- A clear call stops collisions between fielders. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A team-mate warns him before he runs into the fence. (Source: General baseball reference)
- 'Room' tells him there is still space before the wall. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Richie Ashburn learned the Spanish call for shortstop Elio Chacón, then was run over by Frank Thomas. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Calling too early can leave a ball nobody catches. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Saying it twice makes sure a team-mate hears it over the crowd. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The centre fielder runs towards the ball facing the play. (Source: General baseball reference)
- One clear call, the other backs off. (Source: General baseball reference)
- 'Room' while there is space, 'wall' as it nears. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Team-mates warn a fielder before he hits the fence. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 7: Language on the field

- MLB required clubs to employ a full-time Spanish-language interpreter. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Interpreters may join mound visits so the pitcher understands. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Players come from many countries, so shared words help. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Many players come from the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Cuba. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Interpreters help in meetings, mound visits and with the media. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A few shared words speed up mound talks. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Hand signals mean the same to every player. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The interpreter turns the advice into the pitcher's language. (Source: General baseball reference)
- 2016, 2022 and 2023. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Interpreters may join mound visits. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 8: The sign-stealing scandal

- MLB found the Astros used a camera to decode signs. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A bang told the hitter an off-speed pitch was coming. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Reading signs by eye is allowed; electronic help is not. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The fine was the most the rules allowed then. (Source: General baseball reference)
- They lost first- and second-round picks in 2020 and 2021. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A.J. Hinch and Jeff Luhnow were suspended for a year, then fired by the club. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Electronic signals made sign stealing much harder. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Film, decode, signal, hit. (Source: General baseball reference)
- 2017, January 2020, 2022. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The Astros used a camera feed and a trash can to signal pitches. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 9: Talking to umpires

- On an appeal, the plate umpire asks a base umpire if the batter swung. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The first base umpire has the best view of a right-handed batter. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Time is only granted when the umpire calls it. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Polite questions help catchers learn how the zone is called. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Arguing ball-and-strike calls is a common reason for ejection. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A calm talk can lead to a replay challenge or crew conference. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A crew conference lets umpires share what each saw. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The plate umpire asks a base umpire on appeal. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Polite questions are fine; shouting about strikes risks ejection. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The umpire with the better view of the swing decides. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 10: The dugout and the bullpen phone

- The bullpen coach tells the relievers who should warm up. (Source: General baseball reference)
- He gets the right arms ready on the manager's call. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Approved tablets show charts and data, not live video. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Real-time video could be used to decode signs. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Video staff tell the manager whether to challenge. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A slow walk gives a reliever extra warm-up seconds. (Source: General baseball reference)
- He can pick the right arm once he sees who is due up. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Phone, coach, warm-up, signal. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Phones first, tablets in 2016, PitchCom in 2022. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The bullpen coach passes on the manager's call. (Source: General baseball reference)

Sources: General baseball references, WBSC and league material, coaching manuals; original questions authored, nothing reproduced. Numbered rules belong to the Rules category.

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