A baseball team's defense always starts with the pitcher, whether it's in real life or video games. Regardless of whom you have on the mound, keeping the other team off the scoreboard requires patience, strategy, and coordination.
MLB The Show 22 offers plenty of options for pitchers, both in terms of players to fill your bullpen and ways to input your pitches. With this guide, you'll be able to choose the control scheme that best suits your play style and make smart decisions when facing down the Major League's most dangerous sluggers.
Pitching Basics
Regardless of which control scheme you choose, each pitcher has between three and five pitches that they bring to the game. Each pitch has a button on the controller assigned to it - when the time comes to select your pitch, simply press the button for the kind of throw you want to make. Be careful when relieving pitchers, as they may not all have the same pitches assigned to the same buttons.
Once you've selected your pitch, your chosen control scheme comes into play. How you input the pitch commands will determine the ball's accuracy and speed - see below to learn how this differs in each mode. A mistimed or incorrectly-delivered pitch can result in balls that should have been strikes, wild pitches, or even hitting the batter and giving him a walk.
How To Choose A Pitching Mode
Pitching offers the greatest variety of gameplay modes of all the positions in MLB The Show 22, so be sure to try each one and pick the one that works best for you. The game automatically takes you to the Options Explorer the first time it's launched so that you can take each pitching mode for a test run. If you decide later that you'd like to switch, you can do so from the Settings menu or revisit the Options Explorer and make the change from there.
Classic Pitching
The simplest control scheme for pitchers is Classic Pitching. Based on the series' earliest entries, Classic Pitching lets you simply select a pitch, aim, and throw - the outcome is determined by your pitcher's stats versus those of the batter. If you're just looking to play casually, or want a game that factors in the abilities of the ballplayers over the inputs of the person holding the controller, Classic Pitching is a stress-free choice. If you have an all-star pitcher on the mound, switching to Classic Pitching is a good way to let him do his thing without risking human error. It's a double-edged sword, though - even the best pitchers make mistakes, and you may see pitches that could have gone better if you had taken direct control.
Pulse Pitching
One step up in complexity from Classic Pitching, Pulse Pitching displays a rapidly expanding and contracting circle while you aim your pitch. For the best speed and accuracy, press the throw button when the circle is the smallest. This mode gives the player more challenge without requiring as much precision as other pitching modes.
Pure Analog Pitching
Pure Analog mode simulates the windup and throw of each pitch using the right stick. When the time comes to pitch, pull the stick down then quickly push it up when the indicator reaches the yellow line. It's a single, simple motion, and players who master it can see unmatched accuracy in their throws. However, this mode is unforgiving of mistakes, and slipping with your thumb can make your ball go wildly off-course.
Meter Pitching
Players who have excellent timing will thrive with Meter Pitching. While the pitcher winds up, a meter in the corner of the screen fills up. Press the button when the meter is full, then again when the meter drops back down to the yellow line midway. The higher the meter goes at first, the more velocity the pitch will have, and the closer to the line the second input lands the greater the pitch's accuracy will be This is a mode that takes practice to get right, so try it in low-stakes exhibition games before bringing it to multiplayer or longer-term game modes.
Pinpoint Pitching
Each pitch type in Pinpoint Pitching has an associated symbol that is drawn with the right stick while the pitcher is winding up. For the best results, you'll need to draw the gesture symbol accurately and with the correct timing, finishing at the top of the circle when the ring there is at its smallest. To deliver the pitch, the player must then pull the right stick down, landing in the bottom ring with the correct timing. It's simpler than it sounds, and Pinpoint Pitching allows for the most flexibility. If you mess up the gesture, for example, a solid delivery can still save the pitch.
The pitch's base accuracy is determined by the gesture accuracy, and the speed is determined by the final downward stroke. Landing left or right of the bottom ring can cause the pitch to break left or right, allowing you to correct somewhat if your accuracy is poor.
Pitching Tips
Mastering the pitching controls is only half the battle when it comes to success in MLB The Show 22. By employing smart strategy you can make the Major League's finest look like Casey At The Bat.
Know The Opposing Lineup
Before each game, be sure to look at the player cards for all nine players in the other team's lineup - or at the very least those with the highest averages. Knowing the strengths and weaknesses of the batters you'll be facing is the first step to striking them out. For example, if you're facing a power hitter consider pitching inside so that the bat has less leverage if it connects with the ball. A player with below-average Contact could be susceptible to fastballs, and pitchers tend to perform slightly better overall against batters with the same handedness.
Keep Them Guessing
Just like when you're batting, you can check the pitch chart before each pitch. This is done by pressing R2 (PlayStation), RT (Xbox), or ZR (Switch). Note the order of pitches from the hitter's last at-bat and try something different this time around. Batters are most likely to get hits when they anticipate the pitcher's delivery, so keep them on their toes and do the unexpected whenever you can.
Warm Up Your Reliever Ahead Of Time
When the time comes to relieve your current pitcher, it's important that the reliever be warmed up and ready to play. Try to warm up the reliever the inning before you plan to put him on the mound. Usually, you'll get a popup in the upper right corner of the screen accompanied by a whistle from the dugout when the current pitcher is approaching their limit. When that happens, it's a good time to start the warmup.
Start With Your Closer
If you want to be sneaky, consider starting the game with your closer on the mound instead of your starter. Give the closer a few innings, then put your starter in. This means that your starting pitcher will be in the game far later than your opponent's starter, giving you a stronger defense in later innings. The drawback, of course, is that you'll have to end the game with either a reliever or a tired starter, which can backfire if the scores are close.