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How MLB The Show Could Stay Fresh After October


October is often considered the best month for sports in the calendar year. Sports fans find themselves in the thick college and pro football season, on the eve of basketball and, perhaps most excitingly, playoff baseball.

While MLB: The Show players will surely be firing up their PS4 during the month to come, it’s hard to see them hanging around much longer than that. While it's a fantastic franchise, The Show doesn’t have any gripping features that make it worth playing out of season for anyone but the most dedicated fans of the sport. So what could the game do in future iterations to change that?

Here are three things that could keep me playing MLB: The Show once October ends:

A Winter Meeting

The “winter meetings” are a perfect buffer for baseball fans. The meetings, which feature the convening of baseball media and general managers alike, take place right between the end of the season and the beginning of the next one. Filled with trade and free-agency rumors, the winter meetings might provide some much needed variety to The Show’s offseason. So how would the series go about handling the winter meetings, exactly?

The first thing required would be a more complex trading system. Trading, in baseball more so than any other sport, is a nuanced facet of the managerial experience. Once a more complex system is in place, the winter meetings could be a week-long part of the offseason that sees an uptick in trade offers and free-agency talk. Some high-profile free agents could hold off on any signings until this portion of the season, so as to add to the excitement.

Revitalized Spring Training

One of the most special things about baseball is how it really seems to exist 365 days a year. Spring training is a big part of that, as it’s a time to find which diamonds in the rough might best fit your roster while getting a feel for your team’s play style. Spring training also has a uniquely tropical feel to it. MLB: The Show's presentation should better reflect that. Another thing the game could do is have some of the offseason ratings changes take place here. Since there is no real way to see how a player has improved or declined when they aren’t actually playing baseball, why not have spring training reflect any progression or regression?

Another interesting facet of spring training is managers and teams trying players out at new positions. Much like the NCAA Football of old, this could be a time to mess around with position changes to see if one player fits better at a new position.

In-Depth Free Agency

Baseball has always been the most lucrative sport for players at the top of their game, but MLB: The Show still hasn’t been able to properly emulate the flow of controlling a major-league budget. MLB: The Show 16 was a nice step forward in this regard, but the fact of the matter is there’s no real urgency to manage your budget in any kind of frugal way. Contracts are also far more nuanced than they used to be, as players look to join powerhouses or stay close to home. Sometimes they’ll even look to join a specific manager or teammate. Whatever the case, there’s so much depth to free agency in baseball, and MLB: The Show capturing that depth would go a long way in keeping players hooked in the offseason.


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Member Comments
# 1 tril @ 10/11/16 05:30 PM
dont know if the show has this already

they could add the MLB winter leagues that take place in the Caribbean. that would be a good way to scout, rehab etc....
 
# 2 forme95 @ 10/11/16 05:39 PM
No problems here playing through the winter. Only MLB

Sent from my HTC One mini using Tapatalk
 
# 3 malky @ 10/11/16 07:12 PM
Heck I'm still in the month of May in my season lol, so I'm good
 
# 4 mcpats @ 10/11/16 07:27 PM
I would love MLB to adopt a "start season today" feature like 2k17 is introducing. Being able to jump right into a pennant race and head into an off season offering some of the above suggestions would be awesome, especially for those of us that don't have time for a 162 game season
 
# 5 Bullit @ 10/11/16 07:33 PM
My play actually increases in the winter months,because I don't have real baseball dividing my attention.

I have finished a season and a half in my Nationals franchise. If my track record holds I should finish 2 if not 3 more years before the next game comes out.

But I would like more off season features added. like those mentioned above.
 
# 6 koebner @ 10/11/16 07:54 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bullit
My play actually increases in the winter months,because I don't have real baseball dividing my attention.

I have finished a season and a half in my Nationals franchise. If my track record holds I should finish 2 if not 3 more years before the next game comes out.

But I would like more off season features added. like those mentioned above.
I'm with dude...love to play when it's miserable cold outside.
 
# 7 DurrlOnBrakes @ 10/11/16 08:31 PM
2k has definitely set the standard in immersive franchise play. The ultimate marriage 2k Franchise features w/The show year to year saves...baseball gaming bliss.
 
# 8 NastySplitty @ 10/12/16 12:10 AM
Add the World Baseball Classic. An add-on for MLB 16 or pre-order bonus for MLB 17.
 
# 9 dalger21 @ 10/12/16 08:16 AM
I am usually the opposite of most people here. I play for the first month or so "The Show" is released. I stop playing because of other games I am playing throughout the baseball season. I'll play off and on til around Feb when spring training starts back up. I then play "The Show" a lot more going into March and the next iteration of the game. It keeps it fresh for me and I don't get burned out of it.
 
# 10 Thrash13 @ 10/12/16 12:44 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by NastySplitty
Add the World Baseball Classic. An add-on for MLB 16 or pre-order bonus for MLB 17.
I'm definitely on board with this as well. I'm not sure how hard the licensing would be to obtain, but I think the 2K series had the WBC in at one time.

I usually play The Show until the fall when all the other sports games start coming out, but this year I've played The Show much more this time of year and plan to keep playing when I can until 17 is released in the spring.

If they added the things mentioned in the article, it would only help an already great game franchise. That being said, I really hope some of the fielding issues and commentary get the most attention this time around.
 
# 11 KBLover @ 10/12/16 12:57 PM
Didn't know there was a video game baseball playing season - so that I could play "out of season" :P

What can it do?

If people don't want to play baseball games in non-baseball season...anything they add can't turn it back to baseball season. It's still playing a baseball game outside of irl baseball season...which is said people don't do.

I wonder how prevalent it is - do people really shelve their The Show games because baseball season is over? They like the game from March to October, but November = I'm not touching it?

It's...baseball. Even a "cool new feature" is still (I would think) playing baseball. In a video game. "Out of season". Even if it had a BaseWars mode (i.e. like the old NES game)...it's still baseball...Conquest is the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" mode...it's still baseball...Even if you could create teams, players, leagues, universes, a la OOTP...it's still baseball. You will still have to play baseball.

So if people don't play baseball games at all "out of season", wouldn't that same mindset come back into play?

I wonder if OOTP has this issue. If the answer is "no because of online play"...MLBTS already has that. Online Franchise. Ranked Play. Battle Royale. DD.

If it's having the "real" players that's "stale", sim years of franchise, set all management and stuff to CPU, then play in like year 10 - you'll have a largely fictional league and the "real players" probably won't be anything like themselves on the field (or get a fictional roster from the vault). Or do a fantasy draft. Having the Red Sox with Yu Darvish, Kenta Maeda, Kyle Schwarber, and Joey Gallo turning into a slow Mike Trout is lots of fun. Play one season at a time fantasy drafting a new team (I don't do this but it would keep it from being "stale" as you could get a new team each time with new challenges).

Heck, play a different slider set every series or month or season. That will change the experience. Grab a ton of them off the Vault - just download them. Who cares who makes it, what it does, etc. Just get it. Pick one at random every series/month/whenever. Load it and play until your next time to change. Combine it with Dynamic Difficulty set to max for maximum variety.

I don't think The Show necessarily needs to change, but the mindset of players that tells them "I can't play baseball outside of irl season because it's stale now".
 
# 12 bravesfan1984 @ 10/12/16 01:16 PM
Stay fresh? I just started my franchise after the season concluded with adjusted ratings for the 2016 season. It's as fresh today for me as the day one purchase months ago. With carryover saves, I'm more inclined to continue playing.
 
# 13 Retropyro @ 10/12/16 04:52 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bullit
My play actually increases in the winter months,because I don't have real baseball dividing my attention.

I have finished a season and a half in my Nationals franchise. If my track record holds I should finish 2 if not 3 more years before the next game comes out.

But I would like more off season features added. like those mentioned above.
This. Add in NBA 2K17 being a bust this year, The Show will have my full attention until MLB 17 comes out. Franchise and RTTS will keep me occupied and entertained.
 
# 14 JeremyB @ 10/12/16 09:40 PM
Just going into mid July in my Jays franchise

As I've said before there is nothing better in the frigid depths of a winter storm then kicking back with a hot cup of coffee and being in the warm summer months of the show
 
# 15 bukktown @ 10/12/16 09:49 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by JeremyB
Just going into mid July in my Jays franchise

As I've said before there is nothing better in the frigid depths of a winter storm then kicking back with a hot cup of coffee and being in the warm summer months of the show
Tell me you can't almost smell the fresh cut grass!!!
 
# 16 redsoxfan31 @ 10/13/16 12:02 PM
Something I'd like to see included with spring training is to include an ability when offering a free agent is to be able to give them a non-roster invite to spring training because as of right now only players on the 40-man can be in spring training. I also like the ability to change players positions and give them the spring to work on it and I know you can edit a player's position now but wouldn't it be cool to be able to move a position player to pitch or vice versa, I used to loved messing around with that after the draft in Madden and seeing if I had any hidden gems that could excel at a different position (i.e. Julian Edelman, a former college QB)
 
# 17 IHateDuke32 @ 10/13/16 12:29 PM
I currently have franchises going with the White Sox, Cardinals, Brewers, Rockies, and Rays lol. I'm in May/June in all of them, so this game will definitely keep me busy through the winter and until '17 comes out. The only thing that kind of bogs down the experience of playing with so many teams is overlap. I can be playing my Brewers franchise one day, and the next day go to play my Cardinals one and see that I'm playing the Brewers. There's really no way to avoid it I guess when you're using a bunch of different teams.

I also just started a RttS as a right fielder, something I've never done before.

I haven't messed with Diamond Dynasty too much other than collecting cards and putting my squad together. Maybe I'll try to dive into that a little bit.

As much as I love football and basketball, Madden and 2K don't ever grab my attention like the Show does. I always buy them on day one, and then never really play them. The Show, on the other hand, is my main go-to for my video-gaming fix.
 
# 18 IHateDuke32 @ 10/13/16 12:34 PM
Forgot I also just started a Marlins franchise as well. I want to try and win the Cy with Jose!
 
# 19 Ace2734 @ 10/13/16 01:27 PM
the thumbnail photo just hurts
 
# 20 pastafazoule @ 10/13/16 02:52 PM
what it needs is new stadiums,new camera angles,like a camera that can be moved anywhere in the park,new announcers its a great game don't get me wrong but it needs a makeover
 

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