Anybody who believes that fielding is boring hasn't mastered what MLB The Show 23 has to offer. Sure, home runs are thrilling but fans are used to seeing those. The thrill of seeing a player lay out, rob a home run, throw for an out across the diamond, or make a no-look catch is unparalleled.
These are all things players can do in MLB The Show 23 but gamers need to be prepared for these moments ahead of time. There are very few button prompts, forcing players to know what buttons to press, how baseball works, and what goes into being a superior fielder.
Drifting Ball & Throwing Settings
When it comes to fielding settings, there is little good reason not to use drifting ball. It gives a precise location of where the ball will land. A bad fielder will get a larger area, but even a player with a fielding rating of zero can easily get to the center of the zone for the out.
Throwing settings are a bit more complicated. It takes some time to be accurate with them and that element of human error often results in more errors than simply selecting the base to throw to. Gamers should try them all out.
Diving & Jumping
On all console controllers, R1 is the default button to jump and R2 will dive. A few times in just about every game, a ball will land in between the infield and outfield. To take away these bloop hits, learn to dive, slide, and jump to take away these weak singles.
Jumping is important for infielders on creaming liners and for outfielders when it comes to robbing home runs. The timing can be tricky, but players with high fielding stats can get some serious height under their jumps.
Equipping For Success
In Road to the Show, it's all about using the best equipment available. Most of the time, even hardcore fielders will use items that make them better at the plate since these opportunities are more frequent than big plays on defense.
That being said, start with a great glove as it will always improve a few areas defensively without sacrificing offense. Gamers that want the best gloves can use the ideal method of farming up stubs to get the best one within an hour or two.
Making The Smart Plays
It may not be exciting, but sometimes it's better to make the smart play than to lay out for a nearly impossible catch. With the game on the line, diving and missing the ball could easily turn a single into a triple or inside-the-park home run.
Know the situation, the score, and the number of outs before the ball is even pitched. Decide whether it's important to try and toss out the lead runner or if keeping the other runners back is the smart thing to do.
MLB The Show 23 is available now for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.