Yankees reliever tosses PitchCom device into stands, but avoids $5K bill

May 24, 2023  -NEW YORK (AP) — Michael King makes his living by dotting the corners with 94-95 mph sinkers.

But when the New York Yankees’ reliever tried to toss his PitchCom device into the dugout, he couldn’t even keep it from sailing into the stands.

“I’m not used to throwing a rectangular little piece of electronics,” King said with a smile.

Working in the ninth inning of a one-run game Tuesday night against the Baltimore Orioles, the right-hander was having trouble getting on the same page with catcher Ben Rortvedt when it came to their PitchCom signals.

“The one that I got didn’t work. I don’t know if it just wasn’t activated or what,” King said. “It just happened where I was hitting slider at the same time that Ben was hitting sinker. So every time I hit a slider, it was coming through as sinker.”

After striking out Ryan McKenna leading off the inning, King decided to ditch his PitchCom device. He took it off his belt and threw it toward the Yankees’ bench, but it ended up being snagged by a woman in the seats between the dugout and home plate.