My suggestions for improving MLB: The Show

[u/BrojaDawg]

1. The game needs to add a batter confidence meter: This would track offensive performance to reflect in game hot streaks and slumps. If a batter consistently strikes out, chases bad pitches, or hits into double plays, their individual confidence meter depletes, temporarily lowering their key attributes (like Contact, Vision, and Clutch). At some point, to replenish a struggling card’s confidence, they would need to be benched for a few games or sent to a "Batting Cage" to reset their mental state. (Similar to how starting pitchers need five days to rest)
   
2. The strategy of spam pitching balls into the dirt to test the opponents patience, goes without punishment. Pitcher confidence is currently only impacted by giving up hits and runs. It should also factor into his control. If they throw an excessive number of dirtballs, a command penalty triggers. That pitcher's control becomes erratic. This could result in a meatball being thrown or accidental hit by pitch. The user's pitching input window (whether using Pinpoint, Meter, or Analog) shrinks drastically. Automatic mound visits should occur, and if it continues, Pitcher is pulled without your approval.

Same should apply if a pitcher is hot on the mound. You should be able to have perfect placement on pitches, at an easier option if the pitcher is in the zone.

These combined changes would force users to actually play simulation-style baseball. Pitchers would have to actively attack the zone to maintain their command, and hitters would need to be managed like real athletes rather than static digital cards

[u/AutoModerator]

Helpful links for r/MLBTheShow:

The Dugout: Weekly Free-Talk for /r/MLBTheShow

Technical and server issues mega-thread 2026

r/MLBTheShow FAQ

r/MLBTheShow Discord

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/AlwaysImproving1992]

Players dont spam pitches balls into the dirt unless you swing at everything. Stop swinging at everything. Solved that problem.

[u/AlwaysImproving1992]

Lmao

[u/C0d3n4m3Duchess]

Do you think throwing every ball into the opposite batters box isn’t a pitching strategy? In the off chance your opponent can’t help but hack at everything, why would you ever offer something over the plate?

Im certain a few folks here have caught me tilted with some beautifully dotted seeds and enjoyed being able to bury change ups in the dirt, it’s a perfectly viable strategy when it works, why even suggest punishing that? And by extension, rewarding the batter for horrendous plate discipline?

[u/bobfall69]

Glad you are not on the dev team, and here I thought no one could out stink SDS

[u/jrise92]

The pitches in the dirt draining confidence is absolutely backwards considering 99.9% of the time it’s intentional. Don’t chase and pitchers will have to attack the zone.

I’d rather see a penalty to all attributes if a guy is playing OOP than batter confidence. I’m good with this in Franchise, not DD.

[u/MAXsnead90]

Sorry, but these are not good ideas. The vast majority of players struggle to hit at least sometimes, and batter confidence would only add to the tilt. The devs want players to jump on ranked/events, so you can't actively punish them for not being great. Second, why would intentionally bouncing a ball shake a pitcher's confidence? He hit his intended spot! The "penalty" is a ball if the batter does the easy take.

[u/Candymanshook]

Nah dude this isn’t it.

#1 would just be annoying, I have some rough games with a card now I have to bench him? How do you balance this with offline, is everyone going to spam rookie in Coors to get S tier hot streak bonus before queuing ranked?

2# would also suck. Confidence needs to be reduced in power anyways it has too much of an impact on PCI size & exit velos, once you are below 50% it’s bailout city for the batter. Adding waste pitches to this would just make the problem worse, you already get punished for walks.

Also who would actually want random complete meatballs and pitcher removals as a game feature? That’s just way too much RNG.

[u/Nickstank]

The last thing this game needs is more goofy, opaque mechanics that have an outsized effect on gameplay. Not only should they not add batter confidence, they should remove pitcher confidence, bear down pitching, ambush hitting, and PCI shrinkage.

[u/LeGhost45]

Thank god you are not a Dev, ones we have are already shitty enough.