{"id":523487,"date":"2026-03-09T00:14:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T00:14:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/523487\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T00:14:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T00:14:14","slug":"my-kids-interviewed-playstation-about-mlb-the-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/523487\/","title":{"rendered":"My kids interviewed PlayStation about MLB The Show"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>MLB The Show 26 lets you play high school baseball en route to the Major Leagues and maybe even Cooperstown. Screenshot: Sony Interactive Entertainment, MLB<\/p>\n

\u201cAre we the first kids that you\u2019ve interviewed?\u201d<\/p>\n

Last Monday, my nine-year old daughter was asking that question as she and her twin brother spoke via video conference to Ramone Russell, the long-time director of product communications for Sony PlayStation\u2019s baseball series MLB The Show.<\/p>\n

Technically she and her brother were the ones doing the interviewing. Russell was being a good sport and answering them. He had agreed to chat with my kids about next week\u2019s new multi-console release MLB The Show 26<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, y\u2019all are the first,\u201d Russell said. \u201cAnd I\u2019ve been working here a very long time,\u201d <\/p>\n

I\u2019d recently asked PlayStation PR if they\u2019d be up for a kid-driven interview about their new baseball game. My baseball-obsessed son loves MLB The Show and, I figured, would have better questions about the game than I would.<\/p>\n

PR said yes, and my son spent a chunk of the preceding week getting pretty excited. A few days prior to the interview, he dictated some questions for me to print. On the day of the interview, he was locked in\u2014totally fine skipping his after-school cupcake-making class so that he could talk to one of the makers of his favorite sports video game (Sorry, Drag x Drive<\/a>, you\u2019re second).<\/p>\n

At first, his sister wasn\u2019t as into the planned interview. She\u2019s not an MLB The Show player. I promised her I\u2019d try to book an interview for a game she\u2019s into, too.<\/p>\n

But they\u2019re twins, and I know how this one would actually go. When I dropped them off last Monday for another daily helping of third grade, she clarified that she would be fine skipping her after-school activities as well. She would have questions for the interview, though she didn\u2019t yet know what they would be.<\/p>\n

By interview time on Monday afternoon, my kids were home, munching on fruit strips. My daughter declared that she\u2019d like to ask half the questions on our printed list. Plus, she had an extra question of her own that I wrote at the bottom of her sheet.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The kids\u2019 questions. Bottom sheet is my son\u2019s copy. He re-numbered the questions slightly. Top sheet is my daughter\u2019s, lined with doodles she made during the interview. Photo: Game File.<\/p>\n

Ramone Russell was cheerful when we all connected via video conference for the interview. Russell was calling from his office, sitting in front of shelves of baseball paraphernalia. He had framed copies of past editions of MLB The Show. He had trophies. Even some official The Show sneakers.<\/p>\n

He asked them both how much MLB The Show they\u2019ve played. My son replied: \u201cOne hundred and fifty hours.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh wow,\u201d he said. \u201cThank you so much for playing our game so much.\u201d He said he hoped it was interspersed with \u201clots of homework and reading as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Russell asked my daughter how much she played. \u201cZero!\u201d she replied. <\/p>\n

He said he was pleased that at least half of his interview panel was into the game.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>New York Yankee Aaron Judge is on the cover of MLB The Show 26<\/p>\n

\u201cHow do you guys pick the cover athlete?\u201d my son asked, when we got past the small talk and into the interview proper. \u201cDo you just pick, like an MVP?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, that’s kind of how it works,\u201d Russell said. \u201cSo, you know, every year of baseball is different, right? Like, every year there’s a new story. And so, what we try to do is, we always try to focus on, \u2018Okay, who has one of the most interesting stories of last year?\u2019 And if they win a bunch of awards, that’s great. It’s an added bonus, but it can’t just be who wins all the awards, right? There’s some other things that go into it. So, we always look at who’s a good ambassador to help grow the game of baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n

He explained that the people making The Show want to be sure the series\u2019 cover stars, like MLB The Show 26\u2019s New York Yankee Aaron Judge, are \u201chuman beings that have a good track record of helping out.<\/p>\n

Russell did not speak to my kids about marketability, which I appreciated. He kept it wholesome. Frankly, he was going to have a hard enough time convincing my Mets-loving\/suffering son that a Yankee should even be on the cover this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe look at the charities that they do. We look at the things that they care about off the field, and all those things get weighed and then a bunch of us get in the road. And we have what we call professional arguments to decide who\u2019s going to be on the cover.\u201d<\/p>\n

I thought my son was about to lobby for one of his favorite New York Mets, maybe Juan Soto, now that his old favorite, Pete Alonso, recently became a Baltimore Oriole.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would\u2019ve kind of argued for Cal Raleigh,\u201d my son said, referring to the Seattle Mariners\u2019 all-star catcher.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe still has a shot,\u201d Russell said. Maybe in a future MLB The Show game.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Ramone Russell showing my kids an official MLB The Show shoe, during their video call\/interview.<\/p>\n

My daughter wanted to ask the next question. We were keeping it even, remember:<\/p>\n

She asked: \u201cDid you change any of the modes for the new game?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe changed all of the modes for the game,\u201d Russell said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh!\u201d my son replied. I think that impressed him.<\/p>\n

Russell wanted to elaborate. \u201cDo y\u2019all have a favorite cartoon or movie or film that you like?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

My daughter was stumbling on an answer. I helped her out. She likes to watch Titanic, I said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, we have to make, like Titanic 2 and Titanic 3 and Titanic 4, every single year,\u201d Russell said. \u201cWhat we want to do is make sure that your brother has a fantastic time playing the game, and he wants his dad to purchase it again next year. So, to answer your question: We work on every single mode to add things to those modes to hopefully entice our fans to be like, \u2018Mom and dad, you have to buy me MLB The Show 26 because they added all these features that I care about that I want!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat modes did you change the biggest, and how did you change them?\u201d my son asked.<\/p>\n

Road to the Show got the most changes, Russell said, \u201cbecause it\u2019s our most-played mode.\u201d This mode lets players create their own player and steer their career into the Major Leagues and, ideally, to the World Series. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis year, we’re adding more colleges, and we’re trying to focus on how can we showcase you getting into Cooperstown and officially getting inducted into the Hall of Fame,\u201d Russell said. \u201cYou’ll get these objectives\u2014kind of like schoolwork\u2014where you’ll say, \u2018Hey, I need to do X, Y, and Z over the course of my career, and it increases my chance to get into the Hall of Fame.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

My son wanted to know if they added any new modes to The Show 26. <\/p>\n

No new modes, Russell said, but the new game does let you play in the virtual version of the World Baseball Classic, the international tournament that\u2019s happening right now in the real world.<\/p>\n

My son had a technical question about how often MLB The Show\u2019s rosters are updated. He explained that MLB The Show 25 still had his longtime favorite, Pete Alonso, on the Mets this past fall, even after Alonso signed with the Baltimore Orioles. <\/p>\n

Russell explained that the off-season player movements would be reflected in this year\u2019s game.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s my turn,\u201d my daughter said. She looked over the list of questions. I reminded her that we\u2019d written down a special one that she thought up earlier in the day. <\/p>\n

\u201cCan you change the color of the ball?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n

Russell laughed.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, unfortunately, we can\u2019t,\u201d he said. \u201cThat’s a Major League Baseball rule, because, if we change the color of the ball, you may give the batters an advantage and the pitchers a disadvantage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Russell picked up a baseball to show my daughter what he meant. He explained how the stitching has to be a certain way, how changes to the ball could make things unfair. It was a good answer and I thought we were about to move on. <\/p>\n

Nope.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the Home Run Derby in real life, they usually have, during the bonus time, pink and black balls,\u201d my son said. (I did not know this! But he was right<\/a> about the pink balls.) \u201cDo you guys have those in the game?\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019d thrown Russell a curve.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don’t think we do yet,\u201d Russell said, \u201cBecause for us to change the way that the color of the ball looks in game, it’s a lot of work, just for the Home Run Derby.\u201d<\/p>\n

I asked Russell if that\u2019s the first time he was asked about the color of the ball. He confirmed it was. I cheered my daughter on. So proud!<\/p>\n

New question, as my son got increasingly hardcore with his queries: \u201cHow long will it take to get to 99 overall in the Road to the Show?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow long did it take you last year, do you remember?\u201d Russell asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn’t get all the way through,\u201d my son replied. \u201cI got into the 80s but not to the 90s.\u201d<\/p>\n

(For non-Show readers, you increase your player\u2019s stats throughout their fictional MLB career.)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt should be a little bit faster this year because we’re allowing you to set more goals and more achievements,\u201d Russell said. \u201cAs you hit those, you’ll get more points to spend on your player to get to 99 faster, so a little faster than last year.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s one question that ties to it,\u201d my son said. He was asking a follow-up!<\/p>\n

He started asking about how the computer pitches to you when you\u2019re playing Road to the Show on beginner mode. In MLB The Show 25, the pitches are thrown down the middle of the plate, making them pretty easy to hit. He was wondering if the virtual pitcher could sometimes aim for the corner of the strike zone, maybe a little outside.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want beginner mode to be harder?\u201d Russell asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, just a little bit,\u201d my son replied.<\/p>\n

Russell suggested he try the game\u2019s dynamic difficulty mode, which would adjust to his skill level. \u201cIt’ll start throwing things down the middle, but as your batting average gets higher and as you get better, it’ll start throwing more in the corner.\u201d<\/p>\n

My daughter\u2019s turn, asking the lone question I wrote for them: \u201cDo you play baseball, or do the developers who make MLB The Show play baseball?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI personally did not, but I would say, at least 10 or 15 of the other developers\u2026 still play baseball on weekends,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

My son was up: He noted that you can \u201csim\u201d games during the virtual baseball season that you play through in The Show. That means the computer can play portions of games or entire games for you. But, he said, the CPU in MLB The Show 25 didn\u2019t always play as well as he did. “Could they make the CPU keep track of how you play?\u201d he asked. \u201cWhen I\u2019ve been playing in Road to the Show, I’ve seen that the lead kind of gets blown a lot on me. So if we we\u2019re winning, like, five to three, then when I’m [back] up to bat, it’s like seven to five or eight to five.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m so happy you asked that question,\u201d Russell said, \u201cBecause, this year, we have a new feature that does just that.\u201d The CPU is smarter and, when it is asked to take over, he said, it will play more like the human being who was otherwise in control of that player and team. <\/p>\n

Russell said this was something they\u2019d received a lot of feedback about. The developers run surveys and try to listen to players, he said. \u201cWe track all of this feedback, and, then if we’re really good at our jobs, we’re able to create new features that help fix issues or improve the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne more question,\u201d my son said. \u201cHow do you decide the player\u2019s stats?\u201d He was talking about the game\u2019s ratings for all of its real-life MLB players.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe look at a three year average,\u201d Russell said. \u201cWe looked at three total years, because you know baseball is a really hard sport, right? You can have one good year and then the next year have a bad year. And so, to make sure we don\u2019t overrate or underrate players, we look in the past three years and we averaged them out. That\u2019s where the player ratings start out at the beginning of the year. But, as the year keeps going on and players keep playing, we then focus more on what people are doing right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

I asked my son if he thought the players in MLB The Show 25 had the right stats.<\/p>\n

He brought up Pete Alonso, to my total lack of surprise. \u201cI just thought that he should not be kind of in the 80s,\u201d he said. \u201cI thought maybe 90, like maybe 90-91?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou wanted more power?\u201d Russell asked? \u201cMore contact?\u201d We were talking a couple of days before The Show 26\u2019s player ratings would be revealed. For this year\u2019s game, Alonso is rated 85.<\/p>\n

At this point, my daughter was starting to get distracted. Lots of doodling and fidgeting. Totally understandable. She’s not sweating the player ratings in the game.<\/p>\n

My son wanted to know if there were any new difficulty levels in this year\u2019s game. <\/p>\n

No, Russell said, but he was excited about a new option for batting controls called Big Zone Hitting. He asked my son which hitting controls he used.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve been using the zone thing where you move the other stick to, like match the ball,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that hard or have you figured it out?\u201d Russell asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s easy for me,\u201d my son replied.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s easy for you. Oh my god, that’s incredible!\u201d Russell said. \u201cThat’s like the hardest way to play. You found it easy. Good for you.\u201d He and my son then chatted about the new Big Zone Hitting controls. At this point I had no idea what they were talking about, but Russell and my kid seemed to get it, so all good.<\/p>\n

My son then had a question about the MLB team standings that are shown when you play a quick one-off game of baseball in The Show. On any given day, you can play a virtual game between two teams, but could the developers make it so that the teams are in the same place in their division in the game as their real life counterparts are at that point in the season? \u201cIf you’re playing quick mode and you jump into the game, will it have the actual standings [from] before that game?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, the actual standings from real life,\u201d Russell said. \u201cNo, it’ll be like it was last year.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t even understand that one,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t matter, because Russell seemed to. He was writing it down. \u201cThat’s actually a good idea,\u201d he said. \u201cThat’s a really good idea!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, he’s taking a note!\u201d I exclaimed to my son. \u201cMaybe you’ll have an influence on MLB’s Show 27.\u201d I paused. \u201cWe assume they’re making one,\u201d I told the kids, \u201cbut they can’ say if they’re making it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are!\u201d my daughter said.<\/p>\n

We moved on..<\/p>\n

\u201cDoes it take a long time to make the game?\u201d my son asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh yeah, it’s a lot of hard work,\u201d Russell said. \u201cIt takes us every single second that we have throughout the development cycle to make the game. Yes, 100%, it’s lot of work.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow many people make the game?\u201d my daughter asked.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t give out the total number, but it\u2019s a lot,\u201d Russell said.<\/p>\n

I noted that it was probably more than 100 people.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh yeah, it’s definitely more than a hundred. You can say that.\u201d<\/p>\n

I let me kids know that we were out of time. I commended them for asking good questions and getting good answers. Did Russell have any questions for them?<\/p>\n

\u201cHow was I at answering your questions?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

My son said Russell \u201cdid a good job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOn a scale of one to ten, how good was he at answering questions?\u201d I asked, egging them on.<\/p>\n

\u201cHmm,\u201d my daughter pondered. \u201cA seven!\u201d<\/p>\n

My son laughed, then said, \u201cNine point nine!\u201d<\/p>\n

\ud83e\udea0 Nintendo of America is suing the United States government in the Court of International Trade over Donald Trump\u2019s 2025 tariffs, joining scores of other companies that have filed lawsuits since the Supreme Court ruled the levies illegal on February 22. Aftermath had the scoop<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlaintiff has been directly harmed by Defendants\u2019 unlawful actions,\u201d Nintendo says in its complaint, which names U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, recently-demoted Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick among its defendants<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Nintendo increased prices<\/a> of the original Switch as well as Switch 2 accessories following the April 2025 implementation of higher tariffs on goods from China and Vietnam, where much of Nintendo\u2019s physical products are manufactured.<\/p>\n

It is now seeking refunds, with interest, or other monetary damages, via the suit.<\/p>\n

Other companies that have sued over the tariffs include FedEx, Costco and Revlon. The AP reported in late February<\/a> that more than 1,000 firms have sued, many prior to the Supreme Court\u2019s ruling.<\/p>\n

In February, FedEx said it would pass on any refunds to consumers<\/a>. I asked a rep for Nintendo of America about the lawsuit and if they planned to also refund consumers, should they win relief. Their reply: \u201cWe can confirm that we filed a request. We have nothing else to share on this topic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\ud83e\uddec Project Helix is the codename for Microsoft\u2019s next generation console, new Xbox CEO Asha Sharma announced on Twitter\/X<\/a> on Thursday.<\/p>\n

\u201cProject Helix will lead in performance and play your Xbox and PC games,\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n

The cross-compatibility news was consistent with other Microsoft moves that blur the line between Xbox gaming and PC gaming: 1) the pledge from Xbox\u2019s prior leadership pledge last year to \u201censure that Windows is the number one platform for gaming\u201d<\/a> and 2) the late-2025 release of an Xbox-branded handheld<\/a> that plays PC games via the Steam and Xbox PC marketplaces.<\/p>\n

Microsoft\u2019s VP of its next gen Xbox, Jason Ronald, is giving a talk at GDC this coming week, titled \u201cBuilding for the Future With Xbox\u201d<\/a> (Description: \u201cJoin us for a conversation about the vision shaping the future of Xbox and how we\u2019re building a more flexible, connected future for game creators and players everywhere.\u201d)<\/p>\n

\u2694\ufe0f Slay the Spire II is Steam\u2019s latest indie-developed smash hit<\/a>. Mega Crit Games\u2019 turn-based card-combat sequel drew over 500,000 concurrent players on Saturday, during its first weekend of early access release.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"MLB The Show 26 lets you play high school baseball en route to the Major Leagues and maybe…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":523488,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[435],"tags":[49,48,462,82],"class_list":["post-523487","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mlb","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-mlb","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/523487","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=523487"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/523487\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/523488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=523487"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=523487"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=523487"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}