Bullpen Cell Phones Are Coming To Major League Baseball Next Season

Erik Malinowski|published: 01/08/2013, 9:10pm EST

MLB and T-Mobile just announced a new deal here at CES that'll (maybe? hopefully?) cut down on embarrassing miscommunications between the bench and the pen. Starting next season, clubs will have the option of using dedicated, in-dugout cell phones to help get their relievers up and warming. Although, the best news for fans is that MLB will work with the carrier to improve (often unreliable or borderline non-existent) wireless internet coverage in stadiums. The dugout system will also operate on its own cell tower, so as not to be affected by fan usage during games.

MLB has also provided a sample screenshot of what the actual system will look like, once it's introduced during the World Baseball Classic in March. (The giant button-as-baseball? Subtle.) As for the old hardwired phones, those won't :

The phone system will use T-Mobile's 4G network and a Samsung Galaxy 3, a standard phone that is available to consumers. However, the dugout phones will remain in place in case teams prefer to use them.