MLB 15 The Show: Diamond Dynasty Ratings Boost Predictions (5/31/15)

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Submitted on: 05/31/2015 by Chase Becotte

Another week is almost wrapped up in Diamond Dynasty, and with no packs being released over the weekend prices have been soaring almost across the board. So with that in mind, I'll look ahead once again and try to predict who might be getting a ratings boost Monday morning.

I'll be breaking the predictions into tiers based on my own confidence level.

Ratings Boost Probability: High

-Justin Upton - Upton has been ruining the baseball all season, but over the past month he's hitting for average while still hitting bombs.

-Prince Fielder - I predicted Fielder would get a boost last week, and he did get a plus-2 boost. Still, he's not a Gold as of yet. He's hitting .361 on the season (second behind Dee Gordon) and .381 with 9 home runs over the last 30 days. It seems fair to assume he may go Gold this week.

-Josh Donaldson - Donaldson has put together a great year in Toronto. He's received some boosts already this year, but it's hard to find many players hitting the ball better than him right now.

-Paul Goldschmidt - Goldy is third in WAR, fourth in batting average, third in RBI, second in OPS. In short, he's really good. Even though he's already a Diamond, he should get a boost.

-Drew Storen - Storen is second in saves, has youth on his side and is striking out over a hitter an inning.

-Kyle Gibson - Gibson is a young starter that has been stuck as a Bronze to this point. But he's having a great year that includes an ERA of 1.36 over the past month.

-Mike Bolsinger - This seems like one of those deals where Bolsinger just needs to be boosted to get out of being a Common.

-Kris Bryant - Bryant has the right amount of hype and stats to get to a Gold sooner than later. He's just really good, and when you show that early on it seems more likely that a ratings boost will follow.

-Brandon Belt - The last time Belt was changed, he actually was downgraded some weeks back. But he's hitting .330 over the last 30 days and that goes along with 6 home runs.

Ratings Boost Probability: Moderate

-Stephen Vogt - I don't think Vogt is being appreciated enough to this point in The Show. He has been upgraded two or three times, but he's only an 80 at this point even with him being fifth in OPS in MLB.

-Corey Kluber - Kluber was given a plus-one a couple weeks back. This got him back to the rating he started the season at when the game launched. But he has 60 strikeouts in his last 42 innings, and he's basically gone back to being a freak show.

-Michael Brantley - Brantley also got a boost a couple weeks back. But he's still doing great work this season, and I think he gets a plus-one to get to a 90 sometime soon.

-Nick Martinez - I get being slow to upgrade Martinez based on his 2014 season. But now he's over 60 innings on the season and still has an ERA of 2.03. So yeah, upgrade?

-Sonny Gray - He received a small boost a couple weeks back, but Gray has cemented himself as a top starter. He's number one in pitching WAR so far this season and is 10th in FIP as well.

-A.J. Burnett - Folks in the marketplace continue to expect him to get a boost, and his stats are still outrageous even after his last so-so start. In other words, it feels about time for some sort of boost.

-Jacob deGrom - One of the various young arms on the Mets, deGrom has been the best of them the past month. His WHIP is under 1 the last 30 days, and he's been striking out over a hitter an inning as well.

-Santiago Casilla - He's third in saves, and he's got 9 of them the last 30 days to go along with a couple wins.

-Michael Wacha - Most folks expected him to get a boost last week, so let's assume Wacha might get one this week instead.

Ratings Boost Probability: Low

-Edwin Encarnacion - It's a bit confusing following Encarnacion's arc as it relates to his ratings. He was downgraded last week, but it was partly because he gained in some categories and lost boosts in others. I wonder if he might go back to being a Gold this week purely because he's doing what he always does: hit for lots of power.

-Shawn Tolleson - He's taken over the Rangers' closer role and been more or less perfect so far.

-Kolten Wong - Wong has been so good the last month, but he got a boost not too long ago so I'm only so bullish.

-Evan Gattis - Gattis has 9 home runs in his last 100 at-bats. After a horrific start, he's sort of found that Gattis balance. However, his power ratings are already really good so I'm not sure how much growth potential there is here.

-Brandon Crawford - All he's doing is hitting, but he received a plus-four boost last week so I think he might not get another quite yet.

-Jake Odorizzi - He's another young starter having an awesome year. I'm just not sure how many have noticed as of yet.

-Dellin Betances - He has not given up an earned run in 27 innings. That seems okay.

-Lorenzo Cain - He's not on a hot streak or anything, but I just feel like he should be a Gold after taking into consideration his top-notch defense to go along with a solid hitting line.

-Delino DeShields - He's stealing a lot of bases and hitting more than some expected. Plus, he's a Rule 5 pick.

-Nolan Arenado - He's sort of like Lorenzo Cain in that he's just doing everything well on offense and defense.

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Member Comments

# 21 jyoung @ 06/01/15 09:28 AM

I grabbed Hanley and Pedroia for about 10K total when Sony put out that 90 overall+ card pack two weekends ago.

I've just been waiting patiently for Ortiz's rating drop to occur before finally completing Boston's collection and unlocking the 99 contact/99 power/98 vision/99 discipline/99 clutch hitting god, Ted Williams.

# 22 jyoung @ 06/01/15 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VowedVengeance


	I have a feeling Ortiz maybe like Lee and still carry a very high price tag

I doubt it since silver cards have a 42% reward probability vs. only 12% reward probability for golds.

Gold cards are much rarer in this game.

The only silvers that cost above 2,000 stubs are silvers that people are expecting to become gold.

# 23 MrOldboy @ 06/01/15 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by untrugby


	any specific tips on that? I always end up breaking even or just getting a few extra stubs when I try

There really isn't a lot too it. Just look for good separation between buy and sell prices and put orders in, update orders when needed. To be honest though you don't even need to update orders that often. Cards sell/buy often enough that you can just put in some orders before you log off and they'll likely go through when you wake up if you don't want to deal with it. For instance I had a Beltre I wanted to sell, but the sell now price was a bit low for my liking, maybe only a 3k profit since I bought him. I put in an order that would get me about 5k before I turned the game off and the next morning he was sold.

But typically you want to sell the card immediately so you can then buy more cards. Say you buy Trout for 65k and the sell now is only 72k when you know he goes up to 77k or higher. Well you can hold onto him, or put him up for 71-72k and make a quick profit. Then turn that around and buy more cards to sell. Time spent with stubs in cards is time you can't be buying more cards.

Regarding the update, a bit disappointing. Nothing will get me to change what players I use, which is what I hope for with each update. Some obvious players overlooked again while some head-scratchers were given upgrades. Like Fowler for instance. They upped his power, but left his contact alone. That to me shows that maybe they make these updates well in advance of when we think they do, because if they rated him right now I cannot see how they would give him an overall increase. His average has tanked in the last week which to me would warrant a downgrade in power from last week.

# 24 Dag_BoomStick @ 06/01/15 10:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyoung


	I grabbed Hanley and Pedroia for about 10K total when Sony put out that 90 overall+ card pack two weekends ago. I've just been waiting patiently for Ortiz's rating drop to occur before finally complete Boston's collection and unlocking the 99 contact/99 power/98 vision/99 discipline/99 clutch hitting god, Ted Williams.

Be prepared to take a lot of walks with him. I've noticed ppl rather just intentionally walk him or pitch around him. Unless it's a lefty going. He is one of my better hitters. Not the best bc ppl are REALLY careful in pitching to him. Rarely gets much to hit. He is hitting .285 with 20 hr and 65 rbi for me and hitting over 400 with risp.

# 25 Dag_BoomStick @ 06/01/15 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyoung


	I doubt it since silver cards have a 42% reward probability vs. only 12% reward probability for golds. Gold cards are much rarer in this game. The only silvers that cost above 2,000 stubs are silvers that people are expecting to become gold.

Or neshek.... Last I checked he was over 3k.

# 26 MrOldboy @ 06/01/15 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dag_BoomStick


	Be prepared to take a lot of walks with him. I've noticed ppl rather just intentionally walk him or pitch around him. Unless it's a lefty going. He is one of my better hitters. Not the best bc ppl are REALLY careful in pitching to him. Rarely gets much to hit. He is hitting .285 with 20 hr and 65 rbi for me and hitting over 400 with risp.

Not when your 99 DD player is hitting behind him with McGriff or Harper after that.

# 27 Beat LA @ 06/01/15 11:26 AM

As a Giants fan, I saw that Brandon Belt and Joe Panik have both moved up to silvers today. But the one I wasn't expecting was the decrease of Matt Duffy 6 points from a 69 bronze to a 63 common.

In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't matter, as I wasn't going to use the Duffman's card on my team anyway, but I was totally expecting he'd get a slight boost and not a massive downgrade. He has taken over everyday 3B duties with the DFA of Casey McGehee, and hasn't embarrassed himself. He's still hitting a little under .300, but with 22 RBI already. I don't know if he can sustain his hitting stats, but this was the total opposite of what should be expected on the update. No way should he be a common, but at least a mid tier bronze.

Sorry for the rant.

# 28 jyoung @ 06/01/15 11:43 AM

Corey Dickerson has gone from having 4 cold zones against RHP to having all hot zones.

One of the best bargain outfielders just got better.

# 29 MrOldboy @ 06/01/15 11:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyoung


	Corey Dickerson has gone from having 4 cold zones against RHP to having all hot zones. One of the best bargain outfielders just got better.

If that is unique to each card and not based on how players hit with the cards than that is an odd change to make considering he hasn't even played in over a week.

# 30 jyoung @ 06/01/15 11:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrOldboy


	If that is unique to each card and not based on how players hit with the cards than that is an odd change to make considering he hasn't even played in over a week.

Hot/Cold zones were changed for a ton of players today. It's just a long overdue update that Sony finally made.

Your created character is the only person who has dynamic hot/cold zones based on his in-game performance.

All MLB players' hot/cold zones are controlled by Sony.

# 31 ballin095 @ 06/01/15 11:56 AM

No boost for Tim lincecum?

# 32 jyoung @ 06/01/15 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ballin095


	No boost for Tim lincecum?

1 point, from a 78 to a 79.

# 33 jyoung @ 06/01/15 12:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TonyDanzaFan


	Also I luckily sold Cano for a sell now of 22k because I assumed he would drop and if he didn't I could just buy him back. It sucks though because he was my best hitter by far and I'm sure he won't be now after I get him back. But who knows maybe he'll break out of his slump and go back to diamond.

Kipnis is almost as good of a 2B as Cano is now.

Kipnis = 85 contact, 64 power, 71 vision, 67 clutch, 79 speed, high 60s defense, 1 cold zone

Cano = 83 contact, 62 power, 84 vision, 93 clutch, 44 speed, high 80s defense, 0 cold zones

But Cano currently costs 9,000 stubs while Kipnis sells for 2,000.

# 34 Dag_BoomStick @ 06/01/15 12:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyoung


	Kipnis is almost as good of a 2B as Cano is now. Kipnis = 85 contact, 64 power, 71 vision, 67 clutch, 79 speed, high 60s defense, 1 cold zone Cano = 83 contact, 62 power, 84 vision, 93 clutch, 44 speed, high 80s defense, 0 cold zones But Cano currently costs 9,000 stubs while Kipnis sells for 2,000.

Wow he is down to 9k lmao. If he drops more I just might buy him and play long in hopes his season turns around.

# 35 MrOldboy @ 06/01/15 12:18 PM

Now you need Cano for the Mariners collection which is why he will still cost some stubs. If Lofton was a better player Kipnis would probably increase in price a lot. Although I think most people did the Indians already once Brantley wasn't needed anymore since it was such a cheap collection.

# 36 jyoung @ 06/01/15 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrOldboy


	If Lofton was a better player Kipnis would probably increase in price a lot. Although I think most people did the Indians already once Brantley wasn't needed anymore since it was such a cheap collection.

Lofton is still pretty good, especially for how cheap he is.

I'd rank the centerfielders in this game:

A tier = Trout
B tier = Gomez, McCutchen, Pederson, Jones,
C tier = Ellsbury, Lofton, Cain

# 37 MrOldboy @ 06/01/15 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyoung


	Lofton is still pretty good, especially for how cheap he is. I'd rank the centerfielders in this game: A tier = Trout B tier = Gomez, McCutchen, Pederson, Jones, C tier = Ellsbury, Lofton, Cain

Why get Lofton if you can get Pederson or Cain for far less? His poor arm and lack of power just aren't worth it to most people. If the Indians were still a popular collection Kipnis would be more expensive.

# 38 Dag_BoomStick @ 06/01/15 02:35 PM

I've had ellsbury in cf for me and leading off for me most of the season and has far out performed both Gomez and listen. Ellsbury is hitting .302 with 8 hr and 35 rbi at the top of the lineup and won't move unless I get trout. He is hitting both lefties and righties the same roughly as well though I do drop him to 7th in the order and swap out carew for altuve when a lefty starts and put altuve in the number 1 spot. Both Gomez and led ten are hitting sub 200 for me.

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Ratings Boost Probability: High

Ratings Boost Probability: Moderate

Ratings Boost Probability: Low