Nothing gets the virtual nerves going like a good one-on-one battle. For most gamers, this conjures up images of Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, and fighting three rounds to the death. But for me, few things in the gaming world excite me like battling through a tough out during an at-bat.

Perhaps I'm in the minority, but with MLB 15 The Show, I get far more joy when throwing strike three than I do belting a home run. Baseball is often referred to as chess-on-grass. Taking that one step further, each at-bat can feel like its own chess match. You have to think five pitches ahead. Taking it one pitch at a time might earn you an earlier-than-expected trip to the dugout.

The strategy you employ should vary depending on the hitter and, unless you're playing Road to the Show, the pitcher you're using. I've been playing RttS more than I have in previous years, and all the time put into that mode has helped shape my pitching approach.

As a right-handed hurler, my eyes light up when a weak right-handed batter steps to the plate. If there is only a red square or two peppered into all of the blue zones, my approach is simplistic: throw 'em a few low heaters before throwing something off-speed towards the dirt and you'll laugh hysterically as the batter swings horribly and misses.

That's easy enough when you're facing the No. 9 hitter, but what do you do when Mike Trout steps to the plate? Your best bet is to try get ahead in the count so you maintain some semblance of an advantage. But great hitters are just that for a reason, so you can't be too formulaic. You need a good mix of fast and off-speed, high and low, inside and outside, etc.

So long as you don't hurt yourself like Yu Darvish, your odds of pitching a lot of games in 2015 in The Show are quite high.

Don't be simple, but don't be predictable either. The in-game announcers have politely reminded me on more than one occasion that I've developed a fast-slow-fast-slow pattern that is sure to turn into a home run if I'm not careful.

My RttS character currently has a four-seam, 12-6, change-up and slider, and I have a few general ideas with each batter. One of my favorites is to get ahead 0-2 with two low heaters, followed by either a curve or change in the dirt. If the batter bites on the off-speed, great, but if not, I like to follow that up with a fastball up and out of the zone for a hacking strike three.

If I can get a hitter to swing at stuff out of the zone, I like to drop in a nasty curve just inside the strike zone for a called strike three. A frozen batter is one of the most satisfying sights for a pitcher, after all. Another favorite strikeout pitch of mine is the slider. To a right-handed batter, I’ll usually throw it just out of the zone in hopes that they chase. For a lefty, I’ll aim just inside the zone to try and catch them looking.

Of course, your strategy can and should change depending on what type of pitcher you’re using. My RttS character has a mid-90s fastball and is good at generating strikeouts. But if your fastball tops out in the low 90s and/or you induce a lot of ground outs, your approach will be different. Accuracy matters even more, so you should brush up on your painting skills, if you know what I mean.

Baseball is a beautiful sport, and each at-bat is almost like its own game. Do your best to stay ahead in the count and you’ll stay ahead in the game to help earn your team that W.