MLB 08 THE SHOW: Strategy: Tips on Batting, Pitching, Baserunning, and Fielding

[Raider1one]

MLB 08: The Show roster update 3/31

from pastapadre.com

This week’s roster update for MLB 08: The Show contains 195 player movements with a handful of them being highlighted below. The Red Sox, A’s, Braves, and Nationals have played regular season games but the rest of the league starts up today so look for next week’s update to be even more significant.

LF Paul McAnulty moved from Padres Minors to Padres Bench.
3B Chase Headley moved from Padres Bench to Padres Minors.
RP Kip Wells moved from Rockies Starting to Rockies Relief.
3B Scott Rolen moved from Blue Jays Position to Blue Jays Minors.
LF Shannon Stewart moved from Blue Jays Bench to Blue Jays Position.
RP Justin Hampson moved from Padres Relief to Padres Minors.
RP Tim Stauffer moved from Padres Minors to Padres Relief.
C Johnny Estrada moved from Nationals bench to Nationals minors.
RF Jeff Baker moved from Rockies Minors to Rockies Bench.
DH Scott Podsednik moved from Rockies Bench to Rockies Position.
2B Marcus Giles moved from Rockies Position to Free Agent.
CP Brad Lidge moved from Phillies Closer to Phillies Minors.
2B Nick Punto moved from Twins Position to Twins Bench.
RP Greg Jones moved from Dodgers Minors to Dodgers Relief.
3B Tony Abreu moved from Dodgers Position to Dodgers Minors.

Adding to the impressiveness of the updates is that SCEA is actively seeking feedback for future ones. Whether it is errors in the rosters, batting stances, or even details as minuscule as the equipment the players use they’d like to hear about it.

[Raider1one]

from pastapadre.com

MLB 08: The Show roster update 4/7

This week’s roster update for MLB 08: The Show contains 230 player movements with the ones below having been spotlighted. This is a very significant update as it includes those that have just now become members of the Players Union by making an appearance in their first MLB game.

RP Rudy Seanez moved from Free Agent to Phillies Relief.
SP Woody Williams moved from Astros Starting to Free Agent.
SP Chris Sampson moved from Astros Relief to Astros Starting.
3B Scott Spiezio moved from Free Agent to Braves Minors.
CF Tony Gwynn Jr moved from Brewers Bench to Brewers Position.
LF Juan Pierre moved from Dodgers Position to Dodgers Bench.
LF Andre Ethier moved from Dodgers Bench to Dodgers Position.
LF Jay Payton moved from Orioles Bench to Orioles Position.
CF Brady Clark moved from No Team to Mets Bench.
RP Cha Seung Baek moved from Mariners Minors to Mariners Relief.
SS Mike Morse moved from Mariners Minors to Mariners Bench.
RP Aaron Fultz moved from Indians Minors to Tigers Minors.
SP Kei Igawa moved from Yankees Relief to Yankees Minors.
RF Trot Nixon moved from D’backs Position to D’backs Minors.
DH Jeff Salazar moved from D’backs Bench to D’backs Position.
SP Tim Stauffer moved from Padres Relief to Padres Minors.
CF Jim Edmonds moved from Padres Position to Padres Minors.

It appears that some player equipment has been lost in this update which is an issue they’ll hopefully correct shortly. TJ @ Operation Sports has posted that he is in contact with SCEA and they are working on a fix but an ETA is not yet available. All feedback related to the rosters can be sent to their designated email sceamlbfeedback@gmail.com

[iwhackit]

i don't really know shit about baseball..in fact i bought this game to kind of learn about baseball. at first i had a hard ass time doing anything but after reading this stuff i won a game on hall of fame mode! it was dodgers(me) vs padres. i used that pitching help thing though with no fade. but i still got a home run that scored three and got one stolen from me. only question i got is sd bought in some crazy ass pitcher that pitched underhandish and everything looked the same to me again. any tips for that? thanks

[Raider1one]

Originally Posted by iwhackit

only question i got is sd bought in some crazy ass pitcher that pitched underhandish and everything looked the same to me again. any tips for that? thanks

We at PGP are happy that many of you are having such great success with our Strategy guide...
As For this question, The side-arm pitcher is VERY difficult to determine what they are doing because of their unique release point..

If they are coming in as a late game reliever they probably throw only like 3 or 4 pitches so you will have less pitches to choose from.. Most likely they will be very heavily relying on their fastball. But when playing online vs. a real person, whatever they have been doing most of the game is probably what they will do as far as pitches. Just Take a few balls and the Pitcher will probably throw a few right through the strikezone.

I hope this helps!

[Raider1one]

from operationsports.com

MLB '08: The Show - Game Guide to Road to the Show

by Matt Gagnon

MLB 08: The Show has a lot of different game modes to appeal to a wide range of gamers, but when it comes to single-player the most played are Franchise and Road to the Show. Franchise offers up the standard fare with some incredible depth but it's very similar to just about any other franchise mode for any other game.

Road to the Show offers a unique single-player experience that equates to much more than a simple career mode. You can put a lot into making your digital-self the best pro he can be; yet, for those unfamiliar with the game mode this might be a bit of a daunting task. So we here at OperationSports.com decided it'd be a good idea to offer a game guide to Road to the Show. There is information that's useful to newcomers and veterans alike so be sure to read through no matter what your skill level may be.

The general strategy to Road to the Show is to create a player, sign him to a team, perform certain goals, and increase your ratings as you move up through the minor leagues and eventually get to The Show. From there you can sign lucrative contracts, and win awards before riding off into the sunset as a Hall of Famer.

So this will be a two-part guide. Part I will cover creating your player, getting started with his attributes and choosing a team. Part II will discuss what goes on during the season. So that includes meeting goals, increasing and maintaining attributes, handling manager interactions, and how to approach being signed as a free agent.

Creating Your Digital-Self

The first step you take in Road to the Show is to input general information about your player. Be sure to look in the vast library of Commentary Names to see if your last name or whichever name you choose is available to be announced by play-by-play man Matt Vasgersian. There are also 70 generic nicknames that you can use if your name isn't available, but that probably won't be necessary in most cases. I say that it probably won't be necessary because they have audio for my last name, and the only Gagnon to ever play the game (according to Baseball-Reference.com) is the amazing Chick Gagnon who played a total of 14 games in 1922 and 1924.

His coaches and players have a low approval rating for his game.

Your player can range in age from 18-to-45. Unless you want to have your player retire after you've played for a handful of seasons, you might want to make him young. We like going with 21 through 23 because you start off at AA (and that's not Alcoholics Anonymous but rather Double A) and that's usually the age of prospects at that level. If you go younger you might make the big league club before you're old enough to drink, but make him too old and you might already be declining in ability by the time you finally get the call.

There are 8 skin tone choices and you can pick any number but 42. Just be aware that if you choose a number that's already spoken for on whichever team you sign with you'll get the next closest available number.

Primary and secondary positions are exactly what they sound like; the first is what position you'll play the most and second is where you could find yourself if you're struggling to get any playing time at your primary position. Because of the potential playing time issue we suggest choosing a secondary position even though it's not required since it will give you an opportunity to get into more games early on in your career. It's also best if you pick positions with similar skill sets. So if your primary position is shortstop, a natural secondary position would be second base or maybe third base. You do have to option to pick a primary position of 1B/3B or 2B/SS and other similar combinations but we've found that choosing a primary and secondary position is more effective than the hybrid choices. The key is not to make things too crazy by going with a combo like catcher and shortstop because it'll be a problem when developing your player, which we'll get into later.

Finally you choose a throwing and batting hand.

(Note: if you make a player that throws left-handed the game prevents him from playing C, 2B, SS, and 3B. Seems like a small touch but if you've played MVP 05 you remember having left-handed middle-infielders and how weird it looked).

Up next is body size -- while it can be fun to create a short fat guy or a tall beanpole this really has no bearing on how he will play.

Now we get into RTTS's very deep appearance editor. The first option is called "Head Shape" but it also means what your default facial features will look like. Now you can obviously change everything about your player but think of this as a template of sorts. If you've played any of the recent Tiger Woods games you'll find all of this to be very familiar. Go to town creating pockmarks, forehead wrinkles, goatees, and eye bags then we can move on.

Nice dome. What's its area code?

After you've created a mirror image of yourself (or what you wish you looked like), you do more relatively pointless stuff like choosing what color bat and glove you want to use, along with stuff like wristbands and elbow guards. While you can't create your own swing or pitching delivery you can pick from nearly 400 stances and 250 deliveries from past and present players as well as some generic creations. You can preview them all to see what it'd be like to swing like So Taguchi or pitch like Ambiorix Burgos or any other irrelevant player that has a custom stance/delivery.

Lastly, pick some walkup music that suits your taste. Sadly you can't use custom tracks here so you'll get generic ditties or maybe a brief clip from the game's pre-loaded soundtrack.
Attributes

Finally, the important stuff.

-Pitching

If you've created a pitcher, you'll have to choose which three pitches you want to use. You can add two more as you progress, but for right now three is more than enough. Your player should feature at least one fastball and one to two breaking balls. Don't worry about changeups now because they seem to be easier to develop after you've created your player, at least compared to breaking balls. I usually stick with a 4-seam fastball, slider and any of the four kinds of curveballs.

Next, you have to apply a certain amount of "points" to your player's various attributes. Be careful because if you try and fill up everything to the max you'll run out of points very fast.

For pitchers, you start with the relevant pitching categories. It's always important to keep in mind what kind of player you're making. If he's a closer you don't need to add much stamina, but if you're a starter it's a good idea to give that category a boost. Also, pitching clutch deals with your pitcher's composure on the mound so it's needed for any kind of pitcher.

The next four categories all relate to how hitters handle your pitches. If you add to your H/9 (Hits per 9 innings) the CPU will make less contact or hit the ball on the ground more; a higher HR/9 rating will limit the amount of long balls you surrender; K/9 determines the amount of strikeouts you tally; and BB/9 deals with your control and ability to avoid walking batters.

Now you have to increase your attributes for your three pitches. Obviously fastballs need more points in speed and control but none for break unless it's a 2-seam, running or cut fastball; off-speed pitches like changeups require less speed but a good balance of control and break; breaking pitches need little speed but a good amount of control and break.

-Hitting

Now for the offensive players. There's a wide range of offensive and defensive categories but they vary in importance based on what you're trying to do. It's important to note that while you can essentially mix things up with offensive attributes, certain positions need better ratings when it comes to defense. Catchers are the only players who need a good blocking rating; a first or second baseman doesn't need a strong arm; an outfielder doesn't need fast reaction times (though don't neglect the category); a pitcher doesn't need a cannon arm, but it should be accurate.

Even if you've created a pitcher you can still add points to any of the same offensive attributes as an offensive player. You shouldn't have much left by now but it's best to focus on fielding, especially arm accuracy and reaction. This will help you field bunts and come-backers.

A word of warning, make sure you are 100% happy your digital Frankenstein because you cannot edit him after you advance to the next screen.

Team Selection

Now you're ready to "sign" with a team. I use quotation marks because you don't actually sign a contract at this point. You merely pick a team you want to "tryout" for during Spring Training. Still it's an important step in the process.

You can scroll through all 30 teams and see what they're organizational depth is at all positions as well as see which players specifically on each team you'll be battling with for playing time. Because you'll be starting from the bottom if there's an old vet ahead of you don't worry too much because by the time you get the call he might have retired or been released.

The D'Backs probably aren't the best choice for a young catcher.

So unless you're just going to your favorite team it's wise to make sure you pick a franchise that has an opening at your position. For example you wouldn't want to be a 1B and sign with St. Louis or Milwaukee, however the Yankees or Reds would be a good choice. Also let's say you really wanted to sign with the Mets, don't worry too much about the presence of Carlos Delgado in front of you because he should be gone in a couple of years.

Another thing to keep in mind if you're an offensive player who tends to be a power hitter is the DH-rule. So if you sign with an AL team you might get more opportunities as a DH than you would on a NL team. AL teams also have the flexibility to move an aging vet to DH to make room for you.

This is also where your secondary position comes into play. Since the depth of every position for every team is shown during this time it's easy to decipher what situation is the best for you. And you need to find a good situation because playing time is vital. No playing time = no points to improve your attributes.

However, if you're a pitcher you really don't need to spend much time finding the right situation. That's because pitching depth isn't a real issue except for closers. It's tough to supplant an established closer but because each team has a 5-man rotation it's easy to start off at the back end of the rotation then move up over time.

[Raider1one]

Answer to question on my PM:

Quote:

Originally Posted by AKilgour
I've just been watching the ball then I read your post on finding a point to fix on and watching the shoulder, but what exactly is it that I'm watching for? Will the action or release be different for different pitches? If so, how.

OK so 1st trick is to watch the pitchers release point (where he lets the ball go) Fastballs/changeups look similar... The breaking pitches are all similar for each pitcher, but different then the speed pitches, as will the action... Also , in Mlb 08 the pitches are set up in the pitchers order of preference.. (X, Circle, Triangle, Square, R1) Basically Counter-clockwise from X in order of preference..

Just watch where the ball looks like its coming from and flying into the zone.. For example:

If you guess low in the zone and a curve... the ball is probably going to drop if its a curve, so let it go.. but if its low and a fast ball, swing away cause fastballs go almost strait..

Or you can use the guess pitch proactively.. So if you guess fastball and low in the zone, and its neither one, you know you can stay away from the bottom ( so you have a little advantage,) and also know that if the pitch is close it will probably have movement... (the movent on a pitch is determined by the pitchers right or left handed.

Hope this helps you. .

[Raider1one]

from pastapadre.com

MLB 08: The Show roster update 4/14

14 Apr, 2008 23 Comments

The weekly roster update (4/14) for MLB 08: The Show is now available by visiting the SportsConnect section of the game. This updates includes 121 player movements. It also should fix the minor issue caused by last week’s update which removed some player equipment. SCEA has highlighted some of the changes made below. If your PS3 doesn’t have access to online you can download the file from here and then transfer it over.

SP John Smoltz moved from Braves Minors to Braves Starting.

SP JoJo Reyes moved from Braves Starting to Braves Minors.

SP Josh Beckett moved from Red Sox Minors to Red Sox Starting.

CF Jim Edmonds moved from Padres Minors to Padres Position.

RF Jody Gerut moved from Padres Bench to Padres Minors.

LF Paul McAnulty moved from Padres Position to Padres Bench.

RP Bob Wickman moved from D’backs Minors to Free Agent.

C Michael Barrett moved from Padres Bench to Padres Minors.

LF Dmitri Young moved from Nationals Position to Nationals Minors.

RP Hideo Nomo moved from No Team to Royals Relief.

CF Tony Gwynn Jr moved from Brewers Position to Brewers Minors.

LF Ricky Ledee moved from Free Agent to No Team.

[Raider1one]

from operationsports.com

MLB '08: The Show - Game Guide to Road to the Show Part II

by Matt Gagnon
Now that you've (hopefully) read Part I of this Road to the Show Guide you've got you created player ready to hit the field and start down the path to a Hall of Fame career. Here in Part II we'll cover some gameplay basics, especially in the field, and also discuss off-the-field aspects like training points, advancement goals and coach interactions.

Menus

We left off with you selecting a team to "sign" with, so now you're ready to get things going. But before you get right into your games it's best to familiarize yourself with the various menus you'll be going to quite often.

Obviously the Schedule is self-explanatory so lets go to the Career Home tab. There are six sub-menus that are essentially the heart of RTTS mode. The first is the Locker Room. This is where you get messages from your manager in regards to you career path and what he thinks of your play at the time. If you should fail to drive home that big run he'll be sure to remind you of it. Here you can also view your Game stats, Career stats, and Achievements.

The next sub-menu is your Advancement Goals. Here is where you are given certain benchmarks you need to attain and in what timeframe. Usually you'll have two or three attributes that you need to improve to a certain point along with accomplishing three statistical goals. More on these later.

Moving on, we get to Interactions. Here you can talk with your manager on a wide-range of issues. Again we'll get into more detail on what interactions can mean for your player in a little bit.

After Interactions is Training where you apply the points you've earned in-game to increase certain attributes of your player by "performing" certain drills. I say that because you don't actually play these drills out, you just hit a button and your guy "practices." How fun.

Both pitchers and offensive players have the full slate of offensive and fielding drills but pitchers also have to focus on developing their certain pitches along with increasing their ability to limit their hits, HR's, and walks allowed.

Back at the Career Home menu you can view your Batter Performance which tracks how well your player is doing at the dish and if he's meeting his expectations on the Performance Graph. It also shows your recent trend and an update as far as where you might be headed based on your recent play. Unfortunately this is for batters only, not pitchers, but it's still a good way to analyze how you've been doing in the eyes of your team.

Finally there's the Player Card that shows your information, stats, attributes, and scouting report all in one place.

Gameplay

OK, enough jibber-jabber, lets play some ball.

Go to the Schedule and then hit X to bring up a menu and pick "Sim to Next Appearance." Despite being a non-roster invitee you'll play in just about every Spring Training game if you're an offensive player so this should fast-forward the schedule to the first game. If you're a starting pitcher it'll sim until it reaches your spot in the rotation and if you're a reliever it'll go until you get into a game, which is random.

You'll notice everything resembles a normal game of The Show until you get through the introductions. The game will fast-forward to your next "event" which could mean an at-bat or a play in the field. You can't take part in every play during a game, just those you're involved in.

Fielding

Certain positions will get more plays in the field than others. First base gets a ton of action because on any groundball in the infield you have to cover the bag. You'll also make plays by yourself so this is one of the most active places to play.

Next would be the other infield positions, especially up the middle. You'll have to not only field the ball but you'll have to cover second on a double play or a steal attempt. Outfielders tend to get less action and catchers only take part in steal attempts, tappers in front of the plate, and bunts.

So if the next event has you on defense, get prepared to make a play. While in the field the camera move right behind your player and you can position your player before the pitch with the left stick or use the right stick to rotate and zoom the camera in and out. It springs back to position after you let go so that's a bit of a bummer but not a big deal.

Occasionally you'll get a message from your manager as to where he wants you positioned. Usually this involves getting into double play depth or moving in to cover for a bunt or to try and throw a runner out at the plate. Where exactly you're supposed to move is indicated by a faint arrow on your player icon. Simply move in the direction it's pointing to until it disappears.

The countdown is on, GET INTO POSITION!!!

One quirk of RTTS is that when you're on defense there will be action on the first pitch, either the ball is put in play or the runner tries to steal. When the ball is hit simply move your guy towards it and make the play. You might have to dive or jump, but once you field the ball throw it to the base that the situation calls for.

Now this is based on one of two button layouts. If you've chosen the Classic layout, throwing to first is circle, second triangle, etc. If you've selected the Fielder layout it now means the bases are inversed for all buttons. To throw home you now press triangle, to throw to first you press square, second is X, and third is circle. This is more intuitive but also seems a bit quirky.

More than once I've pressed X to throw to second only to watch my guy throw home. So if you want to ensure none of this wonky behavior rears its ugly head I'd suggest sticking with Classic controls.

Hitting

We won't get too deep into hitting because it's not hard to figure out. The only things to take note of are the instructions given to you before the at-bat. You'll be told the situation and what your Goal is. These situations are where you can rack up a ton of training points.

If there's a runner in scoring position you're usually asked to drive him in. If you accomplish this goal you'll get rewarded points and if not you'll fail the goal and lose points you accumulated so far in the game. If you perform in the clutch you get even more points but choking also means a bigger point loss. You'll be asked to do other tasks as well. If your team is struggling against a pitcher you may simply be asked to reach base safely or not to strikeout.

New this year is the "Positive" result, which means you didn't accomplish your goal but you didn't hurt your team either. So if you were told to drive the run in but you simply singled or walked you get some points but not what as many as you could've gotten if you had done what you were tasked.

Also new this year is signs from your 3rd base coach. Before the play you'll be given what sign to look for: three touches of a certain item/area mean that's the play being called.

If three taps of the hat means hit and run and that's what the 3rd base coach does then you have to put the ball in play with the runner in motion. If he swipes the letters three times and three swipes means bunt then you need to get a bunt down.

Like in the field this is all done on the first pitch. In the minors, you'll be shown what the play is but in the majors you need to determine what it is by yourself.

Pitching

Like hitting, pitching is by the book with certain goals to meet. Usually they'll be along the lines of getting ahead of the hitter, not allowing a walk, getting a strike out or if you've gotten into trouble you'll be asked to get a groundball for a double play or simply not allow a run to score.

After the game is finished you'll first see a box score and summary of how you did in the game during the load screen. It's good to check out how you did and what your season stats are so far. Then you'll be taken to the Career Update page that'll review what you've earned for training points.

His approval rating continues to plummet ...

So for example, getting so many hits, RBI, or stolen bases gives you points but striking out so many times or getting caught stealing will lose you points. For pitching, limiting hits and walks will net you points but allowing too many runs or hits will take points away. After that you see how you did with your Goals and how many points they netted you.

Advancement Goals

These are separate from in-game goals and are spread out over a certain period of time. So you should really keep checking in to see how close you are to reaching any of these statistical goals as they determine how quickly you move up in the organization.

Now don't think if you accomplish all goals you'll immediately get called up but it'll certainly help in the long run. Don't feel like you need to accomplish every goal listed but it's good to get as many as possible with missing no more than one. We'll cover the attribute goals in the next section.

Training

Now that you've accumulated some training points it's time to improve your player. A few things to keep in mind is that during spring training you won't have any Advancement Goals and your attributes will never decrease.

During the season however, if you fail to train your player in a certain attribute after 30 calendar days, you'll start to lose ability.

Because of this my strategy during the spring is not train your player at all and to save your points for the regular season. You won't get so many points that you'll get better right away and since you won't regress, I think it's smart to bank your points for when you have to use them.

So whether you choose to wait or start training as soon as possible here's how you should approach training. Notice that each drill has a primary attribute and a secondary attribute and beneath the yellow bar is a red or blue line. Primary means it'll get improved more than the Secondary. So while either Batting Cages drill will improve both Contact attributes, Batting Cages against a RHP will improve Contact R more than Contact L.

The yellow and red or blue lines indicate if that attribute increasing or decreasing. Its position is also important because that lets you know how close you are towards increasing that attribute. So if the blue line is all the way to the right then you're about to actually improve. If it's to the left there's more work to do.

You can use a minimum of 40 points each time you increase a certain attribute but you can use as many points as you wish. I don't like to burn too many points at once so I might use some factor of 10 over 40 like 50 or 60 but nothing over 100.

Like we discussed in Part I, keep in mind what attributes are important to the kind of player you are. If you're a pitcher don't burn a ton of points on fielding or hitting attributes. If you want a fast player, don't spend too many points on power and instead focus on speed.

If you're in the regular season you can press the circle button to see which Advancement Goals you have to meet. You're looking for the two or three attributes you need to increase and I almost always try and complete these goals first before moving onto other attributes.

So if I have to improve my Contact vs. RHP and Fielding Ability I'll make sure I get those goals completed right away. Then with any points I get in the ensuing days and weeks I can work on upping all attributes along with making sure I'm not decreasing in any area as well. But I also like to hold onto some points for the next goals period so I can get the required goals out of the way.

For pitchers this is the place where you can add pitches to your arsenal. You also have to train in each specific attribute for each pitch (speed, movement and control). Stick to the guidelines we put forth in Part I; fastballs need more control and speed while off-speed pitches and breaking balls need more movement and control.

Take advantage of the four different "Pitching Coach" drills to improve specific attributes from the "per-9" list. If you really need to up your K/9, don't rely on just improving a certain pitches movement, use the coach to make K/9 the Primary Attribute instead of the Secondary.

Interactions

The last key area of RTTS is how you get along with your manager and this is done through Interactions. When you first start you won't have many interactions to choose from but as you go through the season you get more choices.

These range from a Manager Meeting to complain about team chemistry to asking for a trade or extension. Manager Meeting is one of the few interactions that don't deal directly with your player except for maybe his place in the batting order.

If you successfully complain about the chemistry the manager is likely to change things up across the board, including playing bench players, altering the lineups and even the rotation.

Despite the team being 2-8, the manager seems to think he knows what he's doing.

Asking for a position change is sometimes necessary if you can't find playing time at your current position. But know that rarely is this request granted. Demanding trades or a new contract isn't often granted early in your career seemingly because teams like to hold onto their young talent for cheap. Each interaction is given a description so make sure you read what you're getting in to.

Also be aware that if your manager disagrees with you or you don't have the standing with the club to complain about a certain aspect of your team you could lose playing time. This is usually the case when it comes to second-guessing his decision to take you out of a game or when you complain about playing time.

Contracts

Instead of the usual fair of negotiating with players in the role of a GM, the tables are turned and you need to negotiate on your own behalf. The first contract you sign is after spring training if you've played well. While the teams' offer might seem low, keep in mind that you're a rookie with no experience.

The standard offer is 1 year and $30,000 but don't be afraid to bump up those numbers, especially if you want to stick with your team for a while. But don't go overboard as the team might stop negotiating with you all together.

A good first proposal is to add a few years and a few thousand dollars. If it's within reason the team will either accept or counter. If you went too far they'll say that they're getting frustrated with you. Too many back-and-forth offers will get the team cheesed as well so tread carefully. Eventually you'll put ink to paper and you'll be ready to start your career in AA.

Eventually you'll need to negotiate another contract but this time you might receive offers from more than one team. You'll also be able to make a lot more money which is always nice, but never aim too high or you'll find teams losing interest in your services and you'll have to go to spring training as a scrub who has to earn a place on the team.

So that's our guide to Road to the Show mode for MLB 08: The Show. Be sure to check out or forums for more tips from our users as well as continuing discussion of The Show.

[Chubz]

there was a required game update today. I don't know what it was. The word going around is that it fixed the foul ball that lands on the screen delaying the game scenario as well as some online play stuff. This game is almost unplayable online

[Raider1one]

from pastapadre.com

MLB 08: The Show roster update 4/21

This week’s (4/21) roster update for MLB 08: The Show is out and contains 114 player movements. There was also a patch released at the end of last week. What it affected is still unknown although it doesn’t appear to have improved online play and may just have applied to some of the minor issues the game had. Highlights of the roster update below.

LF Wily Mo Pena moved from Nationals Minors to Nationals Position.
CF Shane Victorino moved from Phillies Position to Phillies Minors.
CF Jayson Werth moved from Phillies Bench to Phillies Position.
SP Dontrelle Willis moved from Tigers Starting to Tigers Minors.
SP Francisco Liriano moved from Twins Minors to Twins Starting.
3B Ty Wigginton moved from Astros Position to Astros Minors.
3B Geoff Blum moved from Astros Bench to Astros Position.
3B Nomar Garciaparra moved from Dodgers Minors to Dodgers Position.
RP Kazuo Fukumori moved from No Team to Rangers Minors.
3B Mike Lowell moved from Red Sox Position to Red Sox Minors.
1B Sean Casey moved from Red Sox Bench to Red Sox Position.
SS Royce Clayton moved from Red Sox Minors to Free Agent.
RP Josh Sharpless moved from No Team to Giants Minors.
RP Vinnie Chulk moved from Giants Minors to Giants Relief.