Zadzooks: MLB 15: The Show review

Spring has sprung, and the smell of pine tar and bubble gum is in the air. For PlayStation owners, that means a chance to appreciate the latest edition of one of the top sports simulations.

Specifically, MLB 15: The Show (Sony Computer Entertainment, reviewed with PlayStation 4, Rated E, $59.99) delivers additions on many levels this year to offer an accessible as well as features rich way to virtually become part of a professional baseball franchise.

Its crammed with minutia thanks to a development team who must not only feel under enormous pressure to impress last years MLB 14: The Show crowd but to tempt the next generation of fans.

At its most fun are, of course, the 9-inning games between the MLB teams played in some beautiful-looking, realistic reproductions of stadiums and sporting life-like humans on and off the field.

For this novice, it always comes down to simply being able to enjoy participating in baseball from my couch in an easy-to-use and easy-to-understand format while playing head-to-head against a computer or friend.

Setting the game to the beginner difficulty and using classic controls accomplishes that easily and allows near any family member (tween and above) to begin to learn the nuances of the game at a very methodical pace.

My first few attempts to play MLB 15: The Show were dazzling to watch as well as participate in.

Be it the finely honed ability to select a pitch, get a clue where to deliver it or swing a bat with power, just for contact or being able to angle the direction of the ball off the bat while swinging (new to this years options), its all simple. Motions such as catching a fly ball in the outfield and tossing it back to the cut-off man, sliding around a tag or having the third baseman whip the ball to the second baseman to start a double play are a piece of cake and delivered with a press of the button or movements of the analog sticks.

During the simulations, I also could easily tell when my pitcher was getting tired (number of pitches, prompts from the announcer as well a shakier, pulsing target). I swapped him when he reached his limit with first a middle reliever and then closer to record those final outs and seal the victory.

In a second game I played, an unforgettable moment occurred when I controlled the Washington Nationals and used pitching machine Max Scherzer to mow down Chicago White Sox hitters.

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Zadzooks: MLB 15: The Show review