We’re getting into the true “gamers” need only apply portion of the MLB The Show 22 Diamond Dynasty season, and so it’s nice to see two of my favorite DD players getting new cards with Finest Johnny Cueto and Prime Larry Walker headlining Battle Royale Season 7. In BR Season 6, we got Mussina and Volpe, and so the same breakdown applies here with a hitter and pitcher. Cueto is more polarizing than Walker, so I assume Walker will be the pick more often than not.
Battle Royale Season 7
The new “Flawless” rewards:
Starting with Finest Johnny Cueto, it would be fair to say he usually gets destroyed in DD. However, against my better judgment I tend to continue to use him. His windup is enjoyable for me, and it’s one of those times where I wish guys like Cueto and Cortes Jr. had multiple windups you could go through during a game or just were randomly chosen during the game. Assessing the pitch mix, the raw numbers look perfectly solid for a solid 99 overall, but the issue is going to be velocity differentials (as usual). Cueto throws what he throws, but only having a difference of 10-11 mph between your fastest and slowest pitch is just usually tough to overcome in this game. The control is 90+ on everything (but the slider) so the hopes for dots remains, but I would say this card still ends up getting hit around a bit more than I would hope.
With Prime Larry Walker, this is an obvious top contender candidate in RF. He has nearly maxed out stats vs. RHP, 110 contact vs. LHP, a sweet swing, and perfectly good defense. His speed is not that impressive for a year where he had a nice chunk of stolen bases, but factoring in his stance and being able to handle RF without being a question mark is huge for that spot at the top of the tier right now. He seems like the “obvious” pick to me.
Rewards
- 5 BR – 500 stubs
- 10 BR – 2,500 XP, Bronze BR choice pack (x2)
- Veteran Duke Snider
- Rookie Troy Glaus
- Rookie Charlie Blackmon
- Rookie Clayton Kershaw
- 15 BR – 500 stubs
- 20 BR – 2,500 XP, The Show pack (x5)
- 25 BR – Silver BR choice pack
- Rookie Josh Bell
- Rookie Jazz Chisholm
- Rookie Giancarlo Stanton
- Rookie Starling Marte
- 30 BR – 2,500 XP, Gold BR choice pack
- Rookie Cole Hamels
- All-Star Ervin Santana
- Rookie Luis Robert
- Breakout Marwin Gonzalez
- 40 BR – 2,500 XP, Silver BR choice pack
- 45 BR – Gold BR choice pack
- 50 BR – 2,500 XP, Headliners Set 31 pack
- 55 BR – 1,500 stubs
- 60 BR – 2,500 XP, Bronze BR choice pack (x2)
- 65 BR – 2,500 XP, Silver BR choice pack
- 70 BR – 2,500 XP, Gold BR choice pack
- 75 BR – 2,500 XP, Headliners Set 32 pack
- 80 BR – 2,500 XP, Silver BR choice pack
- 85 BR – 2,500 XP, Gold BR choice pack
- 90 BR – 5,000 XP, Finest Shane Victorino
The best Shane Victorino card we’ve ever gotten, and it’s not close? I won’t look all the cards up, but it feels that way. The issue I have with Victorino cards is that even the ones who allegedly crush LHP never quite hit as much as I would expect. I’m not sure if it’s the swing or just my lack of confidence in him, but I have tried multiple times to make Victorino a thing since I love those Phillies teams from that era. Regardless, he’s giving us a chance here with great numbers vs. LHP, better than expected numbers vs. RHP, and then the usual solid defense and speed we should expect. I have some hopes for this card.
- 95 points – 5,000 XP, Rewind BR Flawless choice pack
- 100 points – 10,000 XP, BR Flawless choice pack
- 110 BR – 3,000 stubs, The Show pack (x10)
- 120 BR – Headliners Set 33 pack
- 130 BR – 2,500 XP, The Show pack (x10)
- 140 BR – 3,000 stubs
- 150 BR – 5,000 XP, Ballin’ Is A Habit pack (x5)
Missions
- BR Missions
- Win 1 BR game – 1 point (repeatable)
- Go 12-0 – 20 points (repeatable)
- Win 9+ games in a run – 10 points (repeatable)
- 4,000 PxP in a single BR entry – 10 points
- 10 HR in a single BR entry – 10 points
- 15,000 PxP in BR games – 15 points
- 25,000 PxP in BR games – 15 points
- 40 XBH in BR games – 10 points
- 50 runs in BR games – 10 points
- Bronze BR-Exclusive Parallel XP Missions
- Tally 250 PxP with Rookie Troy Glaus – 4 points
- Tally 250 PxP with Rookie Charlie Blackmon – 4 points
- Tally 350 PxP with Rookie Clayton Kershaw – 4 points
- Tally 250 PxP with Veteran Duke Snider – 4 points
- Silver BR-Exclusive Parallel XP Missions
- Tally 350 PxP with Rookie Josh Bell – 4 points
- Tally 350 PxP with Rookie Starling Marte – 4 points
- Tally 350 PxP with Rookie Giancarlo Stanton – 4 points
- Tally 350 PxP with Rookie Jazz Chisholm – 4 points
- Gold BR-Exclusive Parallel XP Missions
- Tally 500 PxP with All-Star Ervin Santana – 4 points
- Tally 500 PxP with Breakout Marwin Gonzalez – 4 points
- Tally 500 PxP with Rookie Cole Hamels – 4 points
- Tally 500 PxP with Rookie Luis Robert – 4 points
Headliners Set 43 – Signature Series Jason Giambi
More banger Signature Series art here (the best looking card series in The Show this year to me) and a memorable picture too as it’s one we basically had on the cover of our Triple Play baseball games. As is the case with the 1B position throughout the year, as cool as this card looks and probably plays, it’s still generally not the top of the tier. Headliners usually are not, and so it’s not surprising or anything, but with card art this sweet I want to get him in the lineup. My other issue is I do struggle with Giambi at times (weird, I know), but Signature Series Jason Giambi looks good either way.
He has maxed out power vs. RHP, defense that is not horrendous (if we’re grading it by Giambi standards), and good vision/discipline. He also boasts 100+ contact against RHP and LHP, so he can play against everyone. All in all, a very nice card, but you’re taking a hit to get him in your lineup over the likes of Lou Gehrig and Frank Thomas. I would say he falls in that next tier with Votto/Ortiz/Bellinger and so on.
The odds on Headliners packs to pull a diamond are 1:10 (as always), albeit that diamond might not be Signature Series Jason Giambi. In addition, this year you can buy one pack of the Headliners choice pack, which gives you 1:3 odds of pulling a 90+ overall diamond (and of course costs more stubs).
