5 Legendary Players I Can't Wait to Use in MLB 15 The Show - B Easy's Blog

B Easy's Blog

5 Legendary Players I Can't Wait to Use in MLB 15 The Show

Posted on April 5, 2015 at 01:30 PM.

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The popular baseball video game, MLB 15 The Show, released this past Tuesday nationwide. Despite minimal changes between iterations � roster updates, game mechanics, new features � The Show series is well regarded as one of the top sports games each year. Now in it�s 10th installment, Sony has all but mastered the modern baseball simulation.

This year, however, a new wrinkle has been added that was perhaps long overdue; the inclusion of legendary players. All 30 teams are represented by an alumni player. Fans � myself included � have long clamored for their presence in The Show, and, at last, our pleas have been answered.

The impressive group of legends spans across a multitude of eras; Ted Williams represents the Boston Red Sox and perhaps baseball�s glory years of the 1940�s and �50s, Ernie Banks does the same for the Chicago Cubs, as does Harmon Killebrew of the Minnesota Twins. A batch of more contemporary players like Steve Finley of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Dante Bichette of the Colorado Rockies and Kenny Lofton of the Cleveland Indians are in the game as well.

Legendary players can be used in both the Diamond Dynasty mode and Franchise mode. Unlocking a legendary player�s card, or collecting an entire MLB team of cards grants the user access to that team�s representative. Additionally, the user can �opt-in� in the franchise mode, allowing the legend�s to enter the free agent pool.

With that being said, since I�m not quite ready to start my franchise just yet � I�m thinking about using the Mets � instead, I�ve made a list of the top five legendary players I plan on incorporating into my franchise:

Ted Williams, OF � Boston Red Sox

The Splendid Splinter, Mr. Ted Williams, is the game�s highest rated legend and rightfully so � Williams is arguably the greatest hitter of all time.

Despite losing five of his prime years to service in both World War II and the Korean War, Williams amassed a total of 521 homeruns, 1,839 runs batted in, and finished his career as a lifetime .344 hitter. Nobody in baseball history combined the ability to hit for power and average the way Williams did.

If you want further indicative stats of just how dominating Williams was, look no further than his career .482 on-base percentage. Essentially, Williams reached base every other time at bat. If he wasn�t hitting homeruns or driving runs in, the Kid was patiently waiting back for a pitch he could drive.

While I�ve never been able to show much discipline in The Show myself, I�ll do my best to coax out a walk here or there each time Williams comes to bat in my franchise.

Nolan Ryan, P � Texas Rangers

Nolan Ryan, whose 26 years in the big leagues covered four decades, is my favorite legend pitcher included in this year�s game. Ryan was the ultimate flamethrower � he routinely reached 100 miles per hour with his fastball and was still reaching the mid-to-high 90�s pitching well into his mid forties.

His 5,714 career strike outs are the most all time, by a wide margin. His seven career no hitters as well as 12 one-hitters are also tops in both categories. Ryan is one of only four pitchers inducted into the Hall of Fame who struck out more hitters than innings pitched.

Interestingly enough, Ryan never pitched a perfect game, nor did he ever win a Cy Young award. His only career playoff series victory occurred way back in his rookie year, 1969, with the Mets � the same team that went on the win a World Series Championship that year.

Statistical oddities aside, to give you a clue as to just how dominating Ryan is in The Show; in a quick three inning game against the Yankees, Ryan had served up seven strike outs, allowed no walks and just one hit. All seven of his K�s were swing-and-miss.

If I end up choosing the Mets as my franchise team this year, Ryan will likely draw consideration to be my number one starter. I shudder to think how dominating a rotation featuring Nolan Ryan and Matt Harvey could be in video game form.

Yogi Berra, C � New York Yankees

Perhaps no other player in professional sports history was a better quote than Yogi Berra. His terse comments and witty one-liners � Yogiisms � are still comical today; �It�s getting late, early� and when referring to a crowded restaurant, �Nobody goes there anymore, it�s too crowded.�

Because of his larger-than-live persona, Yogi�s on-field accomplishments often get overlooked by today�s younger generation of fans. His notable career accomplishments prove he was more than just a great quote; Berra was voted the Most Valuable Player in the American League three times throughout the 1950�s, won 10 World Series Championships as a player with the Yankees and three more as a manager later on with the Mets.

I�ve only been able to get a few hacks with Yogi thus far � both measly groundouts � though I�m looking forward to having him behind the plate on my team this year. Too bad The Show doesn�t offer postgame interviews.

Tom Seaver, P � New York Mets

Fun fact: my mom�s favorite baseball player of all time is� Tom Seaver. For that reason alone, I couldn�t leave this legendary Met off my list.

Seaver is the greatest pitcher in Mets history � a strong, bullish thrower who used his legs to power his delivery. The results were favorable; Tom Terrific is a member of the 300 win club and also received the highest percentage of votes � 98.84 � for any player entering the Baseball Hall of Fame. That�s higher than Nolan Ryan�s 98.79 and Ty Cobb�s 98.23. He is also the only player enshrined in the Hall donning the interlocking blue-and-orange NY of the Mets.

Like Ryan, I was only able to get a sample size of how dominate Seaver is in-game � he struck out the side in his lone inning of work. For those wondering, yes, his signature delivery is in The Show � his right knee seemingly scrapes the dirt of the mound during his follow through. Awesome!

Adding a pitcher the caliber of Seaver�s to an already formidable rotation seems almost fantasy-like and it is. Imagine a one-two-three of Seaver, Ryan, and Harvey?

Rod Carew, 2B � Los Angeles Angels

An interesting choice as my fifth and final legend, Rod Carew was a spectacular hitter over the course of his 19 year career.

While he never hit for much power � Carew�s 92 career homeruns in 3,053 at bats can attest to that � his game was centered on a sound approach at the plate. He led the American League in hitting seven times, including five times from 1972 to 1979. Additionally, Carew won the Most Valuable Player award after an outstanding 1977 season which saw him hit for the second highest average, .388, since Ted Williams� .406 way back in 1941.

Video game wise, Carew should be a lot of fun to play with � think Robinson Cano with slightly less power but more adept to driving balls into the alleys. He wasn�t much of a glove at second base, though, really, who cares about that in a video game?