Perhaps the best element of MLB: The Show is its ability to get into the head of its player. The CPU A.I. is designed to toy with the player just as a pitcher would on the mound. A fastball here, a curveball there, and before you know it, you're watching your player walk back to the dugout empty handed.
Not all pitches were created equal, however. Kershaw's curve is unfair, Harvey's fastball is practically invisible and Sale's slider is just downright scary. With that in mind, what are the toughest pitches to hit in MLB: The Show 16?
1. The Changeup: If you're set up with a mid-90s fastball, the changeup can be almost impossible to hit. Anything down in the zone is hard to recognize and often unhittable even if you get a decent read on it. You will usually see more of this off-speed pitch late in games, as pitchers do their best to differentiate after the first time through the lineup.
The "Nastiest" Changeups: Cole Hamels, Dallas Keuchel, Jose Fernandez
2. The 12-6 Curvball: If a pitcher is spotting the curveball, you may as well throw in the towel. Similar to the changeup, anything down and out of the zone is going to be tough to hit unless you like rolling the ball back to the pitcher. The 12-6 is particularly difficult, given that there's no sweeping action to help pick it up. Often times, the pitch looks like a fastball because of the fast spin out of the pitcher's hand. Foul it off and move on, if at all possible.
The "Nastiest" Curveballs: Clayton Kershaw, Jake Arrieta
3. The Slider: Let's be honest, if you don't often strike out to the slider tailing down and out of the zone, you're probably a baseball god. There is no pitch in baseball that will leave a batter hanging quite like the slider. It can come in many different forms (the backdoor, down and in, down, etc), all of which are perfect for the pitcher to ring up another strikeout.
The "Nastiest" Sliders: Chris Sale, Max Scherzer, Huston Street, Ken Giles
4. The Knuckleball: The knuckleball is the single-most confusing thing in all of sports. It starts out moving one direction, then moves another, then a few more twists and turns after that. Luckily, it has only been mastered by a rare few, and even then hardly for more than a season or two. A good knuckleball is the unicorn of baseball pitches: It seems neat when you first get a glance at it, but you'll probably want to run away when it starts getting closer. The knuckleball is easier to hit in this year's version of The Show, but it's still a dangerous pitch.
The "Nastiest" Knuckleballs: R.A. Dickey