Pitcher wiping to a sign?

When a pitcher doesn't agree with the pitch that his catcher puts down there are a variety of ways he can say "no thanks." One of those ways is the more unconventional method and it involves wiping to a new pitch.

Here's how it works.

When the pitcher looks in and doesn't like his sign, he can choose to add or subtract from that sign by wiping his shirt or wiping his pants. If he wipes his shirt he is adding to the sign. If he wipes his pants, he is subtracting from the sign. Here is an example of how this works. Pitcher is pitching out of the stretch and wants to throw a changeup (4- or wiggle). The catcher, however, drops the number 2. Instead of the pitcher shaking and waiting for the catcher to drop the sign, the pitcher can add 2 by wiping to times to above his belt. The catcher simply adds two to his number two he dropped and then expects the changeup. The same could be done by subtracting if you wipe below the belt.

Why would this alternative be preferred over the more conventional method? Simply put, it speeds the process up.

Pitchers like to work quickly and this method can sometimes make things a little quicker.

This is definitely something that could be considered to have a pitcher work faster.