MLB The Show 25 is finally here, and after a few days of early access, the full release has officially landed. Over the past several days, I've been diving deep into Diamond Dynasty, but today, we're shifting gears and focusing on Road to the Show (RTTS)—with a special emphasis on testing out the much-discussed metal bats.
One of the biggest questions I have going into MLB The Show 25 is whether metal bats make a difference in RTTS. Can they generate noticeably higher exit velocities? Do they impact power in a significant way? To test this, I'm taking an unconventional approach to my Road to the Show career, cranking up the sliders and optimizing every aspect of my player to maximize power. Let's break down the experiment and see if we can push the limits of the game's physics engine.
Setting the Stage: Maximizing Power on the Road to the Show
To get the best possible results, I set up my player to be a first baseman, traditionally a power-hitting position. I allocated every available token into power attributes, ensuring my character would be a home run machine right from the start. After some quick customization, my player—let's call him Fred Bing Bong—was ready to start crushing baseballs.
But I didn't stop there. I adjusted the gameplay settings to fully optimize my hitting capabilities:
• Hitting Difficulty: Set to Beginner (essentially turning every pitch into batting practice).
• Sliders Adjustments:
• Human Contact: Maxed out
• Human Power: Maxed out
• Human Solid Hits: Maxed out
By tweaking these settings, I ensured that nearly every swing resulted in a Perfect hit, maximizing our ability to analyze exit velocity and home run distances. Now, the question remained—would metal bats help me hit the furthest home run possible?
The Home Run Experiment Begins
Jumping into my first game, I immediately set out to test my theory.
The first swing of the game: Perfect-Perfect, exit velocity of 116 MPH, and a 450-foot bomb. Not a bad start!
As the game progressed, I continued mashing home runs with ease:
• Second home run: 106 MPH, 401 feet
• Third home run: 110 MPH, 427 feet
Despite the impressive distance, I quickly realized something—the metal bat didn't seem to be making a significant difference. My exit velocities were solid, but nothing out of the ordinary compared to previous MLB The Show games.
In MLB The Show 24, I recall seeing exit velocities push into the 120+ MPH range, but here, even with boosted sliders, the hardest hit I could manage was 115 MPH. It seems the developers may have tuned down the power of metal bats to keep the game more balanced.
The Quest for the Black Pencil Bat
As a side mission, I also attempted to unlock the Black Pencil Bat, a unique bat rumored to exist in RTTS. The bat first appeared in a Twitter screenshot, and I was determined to see if it added any additional power to my swings.
During one of my games, I noticed a teammate wielding the bat in the dugout—but I wasn't able to equip it myself just yet. This confirmed that the bat is in the game, but how to obtain it remains unclear. Whether it has special properties or is purely cosmetic remains to be seen, but I'll keep grinding to find out.
Draft Stock and the Road to College
With my player automatically hitting home runs, I set my sights on becoming the first overall draft pick. Despite my dominance at the plate, my projected draft stock fluctuated between 2nd and 8th rounds, which felt bizarre considering I was putting up video game numbers—literally.
Rather than risk a low draft position, I opted to attend Texas Christian University (TCU), which boasted a 5-star skill development program. This would allow me to continue upgrading my power and hopefully push my exit velocities even higher in college.
Breaking Records: The Longest Home Run Yet
As I continued my RTTS journey in college, I finally managed to break my 450-foot home run record.
• 459 feet, 115 MPH exit velocity
This was the longest home run I had hit so far in MLB The Show 25. While it was satisfying, I still felt underwhelmed compared to previous years, when I had reached 120+ MPH exit velocities and even further distances with similar settings.
This led me to believe that exit velocity caps might have been adjusted in this year's game. While power attributes and sliders certainly help, it appears there is now a ceiling that prevents exaggerated home run distances.
Final Thoughts: Do Metal Bats Matter?
After multiple games and dozens of home runs, my biggest takeaway is this:
Metal bats in MLB The Show 25 do not seem to provide any noticeable advantage over standard wood bats.
Unlike real-life college baseball, where metal bats generate higher exit velocities due to their trampoline effect, MLB The Show 25 appears to have balanced them to behave similarly to wooden bats. This is likely a design choice to maintain gameplay balance and avoid unrealistic power spikes.
While it's fun to experiment with different equipment, the real key to hitting massive home runs in RTTS comes down to player attributes, perk selection, and optimized gameplay settings. Sliders and difficulty adjustments can boost performance, but there is a hard cap on exit velocity and home run distance.
What's Next?
With my RTTS career in full swing, my next goals include:
• Finding and equipping the Black Pencil Bat to see if it provides any hidden benefits.
• Continuing to increase power attributes in college to push for even greater distances.
• Testing more perks that might impact exit velocity and overall performance.
For now, though, the results are clear—while MLB The Show 25 has refined and balanced gameplay, metal bats don't have the significant impact I had hoped for. But hey, at least Fred Bing Bong is on his way to becoming a legend.
Stay tuned for more updates as we continue the Road to the Show grind!
Have you noticed any differences with metal bats in MLB The Show 25? What's the longest home run you've hit so far? Let me know in the comments! And buy MLB The Show 25 Stubs in MMOexp.com, enjoy the MLB The Show 25.
MMOexp MLB 25 Team