MLB The Show 22 is the latest addition to Sony’s top-tier baseball game, which is also now available on Xbox and Xbox Game Pass. There are a plethora of single player and multiplayer game modes making their return too, from Diamond Dynasty to Road to the Show, so you’ll want to brush up on your skills here before getting in-game.
Pitching is one of the crucial elements that you need to master if you’re looking to invest a lot of time into the game. Well, you’re in luck if you’re trying to find out the MLB The Show 22 best pitches because we’ve compiled all of them into one place to help you on your journey to becoming the next Pedro Martinez.
All of these pitches are useful in different situations and game modes, so choose the one that best fits your play style and needs. Without further ado, here are all the best ways to sneak the ball past the batter and over the plate that aren’t a fastball.
MLB The Show 22 best pitches
These are all the MLB The Show 22 best pitches in the game right now:
- Sinker
- Slider
- Changeup
- Cutter
- Knuckleball
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Sinker
The sinker is a sneaky one. It is pitched fast and resembles a fastball for the first half of its flight, before it suddenly dips down towards ground significantly. This is a good pitch to use either directly after you’ve pitched a fastball – to make the batter think you’re going for a follow-up – or when you haven’t delivered a fastball in a while.
This pitch’s fast nature leaves little thinking time for the batter, which means they need to choose whether to swing or not quickly, and waiting to observe the sink often means it’s too late for them to react. Aim low in the strike zone and a batter may mistake the pitch for a low fastball, causing them to swing at the ball as it buries itself in the dirt for what would be a foul ball.
Slider
Like the sinker, the slider can often be mistaken for a fastball by the batter early in the pitch. It then breaks away and curves laterally to the side before swinging back in over the plate. Sliders should be used with caution, however, as the ball slows significantly when breaking away from, and back to, the home plate, which means if the pitch is identified by a skilled batter, it can end up being a juicy home-run target. Use the slider to mix up your pitching game.
Changeup
When pitching, the changeup is held in a similar way in the hand as a fastball, meaning that eagle-eyed batters can be deceived before the ball even leaves the pitcher’s mound. When it is thrown, the changeup has a much lower velocity than a fastball. This off-tempo pitch can cause confusion in batters as they swing far too early, expecting a fastball. Perfect to use as a fastball fake out or mix-up, the changeup, like the slider, is in danger of being knocked into the stands if the batter works out what you’re up to.
Cutter
The cutter is a fastball that is slightly slower and that has a little lateral curve to it, making it a hybrid of a traditional four-seam fastball and a slider. It’s useful for luring batters to swing on pitches near the edge of the strike zone so that they either get a strike or hit for a foul ball. With less of a curve than other pitches on this list, your pitching aim has to be on point to fully utilise the cutter.
Knuckleball
This pitch is a controversial one. Last year, it was almost entirely absent from gameplay as the development team couldn’t balance it for both single player and multiplayer modes. The knuckleball returns for MLB The Show 22, but it is tied to archetypes and will not be available in online modes like Diamond Dynasty.
The knuckleball is thrown with no spin whatsoever, meaning that where it goes is anybody’s guess – if the pitcher can’t predict it, how can the batter? The downside is that it’s slow and hangs over the plate, making it fodder for big hitters. Use it when you need a wild card moment.
These are the best five pitches to use in MLB The Show 22 that aren’t a fastball. The situations you should use them in will change on the fly, but you’ll get a feel for the kinds of pitches a batter swings at as you play and can pick from these according to your strategy.
There will be more guides to come from us, and they’ll be updated with all the latest information as we have it.