MLB the Show 22: Player Ratings for Shohei Ohtani and Top Stars

MLB the Show 22, launching on Tuesday, is the successful follow-up to MLB the Show 21 from developer San Diego Studio. 

Fittingly, the game's cover star is Los Angeles Angels two-way player Shohei Ohtani. A year ago, the series didn't just handle the jump to next-generation consoles in excellent fashion, it also jumped to other consoles like the Xbox for the first time. This year's game will take that a step further by launching on the Nintendo Switch, too. 

With the game's release approaching, we'll step back and take a look at one of the biggest talking points of any major sports release—the player ratings. Here's a look at some notables there, plus the big features to know.

MLB the Show 22 Notable Player Ratings

Corbin Burnes, SP, Brewers: 94

Mike Trout, CG, Angels: 99

Ronald Acuna Jr., CF, Braves: 99

Jacob deGrom, SP, Mets: 99

Trea Turner, 2B, Dodgers: 96

Fernando Tatis Jr., SS, Padres: 96

Mookie Betts, OF, Dodgers: 92

Aaron Judge, OF, Yankees: 97

Like with other sports releases such as Madden, there aren't many shockers when it comes to the known player ratings right now. 

Mike Trout, as expected, sits at a 99 overall. He's part of the "Diamond Club," a moniker given to the elites of the game who stand out beyond the rest in the game mode Diamond Dynasty. Ohtani, the cover star, sits comfortably at an 80. 

Before early access and launch, San Diego Studio also went an interesting way by holding back some overall ratings for players, instead opting to only offer up specific ratings for certain players. Cody Bellinger of the Los Angeles Dodgers, for example, was revealed to have 94 arm strength, and Joey Votto of the Cincinnati Reds had a 95 power vs. right-handed pitchers. 

Preview

As always with sports games, the hype for player ratings won't mean much if the game doesn't deliver sound gameplay and notable upgrades on an annual basis. 

Luckily for The Show fans, neither of those things have been a problem for a long time. 

Look at the presentation department. This year's game won't feature the same old commentary again, this time putting the duo of Jon "Boog" Sciambi and Chris Singleton in the booth for play-by-play and color commentary. 

It's not a little thing. Players who have invested serious time in the series over the years couldn't help but hear repetitive lines and were likely able to predict certain lines. This year felt like a good time for a change of pace and, if it's anything like their predecessors, Sciambi and Singleton will breathe new life into the broadcast-stylized presentation. 

March to October, a game mode with serious upward momentum in popularity, will now extend beyond just one season and gets a suite of upgrades that loop in a free-agency aspect to the experience. 

Then there's Road to the Show, which got a developer deep dive here: 

The mode that helped revolutionize career modes for sports games sounds like a lock to keep its spot as a trendsetter. This year the game will let players create multiple Ballplayers, as opposed to last year's solo act that ended up being amazing at literally everything on the field while also being usable in modes like Diamond Dynasty. 

Besides giving players more options, RttS in 2022 offers up expanded branching storylines and conversations as players make their journey from the minors to the pros. Also getting more depth are those spectacular, dynamic podcast episodes that capture the essence of the player's journey. 

Speaking of Diamond Dynasty, the mode will seemingly take another step in the depth department by offering ways to engage in and around the esports scene. It's one of those "game within a game' modes that players can spend every second of their time on, and it seems to be only getting bigger.  

As a whole, based on the track record of the series, it was always reasonable to expect another solid offering for The Show. That's only confirmed by the known information so far ahead of the anticipated release date.