Some Major League baseball players are known to wear necklaces simply as decorative jewelry, but in the early 2010s, many players began wearing similar necklaces called Phitens. Some players believe these necklaces improve their athletic performance.
Phiten, the company that makes the necklaces, was founded in 1982 by a Japanese alternative medicine practitioner, Yoshihiro Hirata. Spokespersons from Phiten have explained that titanium is converted into what they call Aqua Titanium and infused into their necklaces. With little scientific evidence to support its claims, Phiten has said that the Aqua Titanium stimulates biological electric currents in a person's body and increases movement and agility. Though the claims are not validated, baseball players have long been known to be a superstitious group, collectively, which may contribute to the necklaces' popularity.
