Submitted on: 04/03/2009 by
Chase Becotte
MLB 09: The Show is marketed as the "most realistic baseball game" available today, but how realistic is it when compared to the real MLB season? While there is no way of knowing that until the real season is over, I used the most current rosters that are available online and simulated the MLB season on default settings to see what "the most realistic game" has to say about the '09 season, which just so happens to start this Sunday,
So, here is a quick rundown of what The Show predicts will happen during the '09 season.
When it comes to the regular season, the NL East was tight as usual. The Phillies won the division again, but the Mets actually held their own and won the NL Wild Card. Surprisingly, San Diego won the NL West by eight games over the Dodgers. The Cubs won the Central by two games over St. Louis.
As expected, the AL East was very close. The Red Sox edged out Tampa Bay and the Yankees. However, Tampa Bay did win the Wild Card, which means the Bronx Bombers were the odd-men out. The Indians bounced back after a terrible 2008 and won the AL Central, and the Angels won the AL West for the fifth time in six years.
American League
MVP
Carlos Pena
Tampa Bay Rays
53 HR
.310 AVG
125 RBI
Cy Young
Kelvim Escobar
Los Angeles Angels
21-6
3.31 ERA
Rolaids Relief Award
Troy Percival
Tampa Bay Rays
41 Saves
2.99 ERA
Rookie of the Year
2B Chris Getz
Chicago White Sox
.239 AVG
13 HR
64 RBI
National League
MVP
Albert Pujols
St. Louis Cardinals
50 HR
.316
118 RBI
Cy Young
Chicago Cubs
Ryan Dempster
20-8
3.12 ERA
Rolaids Relief Award
San Diego Padres
Heath Bell
39 Saves
2.70 ERA
Rookie of the Year
C Angel Salome
Milwaukee Brewers
.261 AVG
11 HR
79 RBI
After the season was over, some big names decided to hang up their cleats for good. The list includes a few future Hall of Famers as well.
Carlos Delgado
John Smoltz
Jorge Posada
Tom Glavine
Tim Wakefield
Jamie Moyer
Trevor Hoffman
Todd Helton
The NLDS and ALDS matchups were Phillies-Cubs, Mets-Padres, Rays-Indians and Angels-Red Sox. The Cubs finally made it out of the first round against the defending champs, and the Mets took down the Padres. Tampa Bay knocked out Cleveland and Boston beat the Angels in the playoffs, again.
The ALCS was a rematch of last year, with Tampa Bay facing off against Boston. The Rays did not fare as well as they did in 2008, losing in six games. In other words, Boston punched their third ticket to the World Series in six years. The New York Mets dumped the Chicago Cubs in five games and headed back to the World Series for the first time since 2000. Of course, this also meant Boston and New York faced off in a rematch of the infamous 1986 World Series.
In real life, New York would have brought out Mookie Wilson, Jesse Orosco, Keith Hernandez, Darryl Strawberry and every other pivotal Mets player from that classic, 23-year-old World Series. The virtual Mets did not have that option, nor did they have home-field advantage since the NL lost the All-Star Game. The Red Sox came into the matchup with World Series experience and a chip on their shoulder -- presumably relishing the opportunity to put the city of New York down one more time.
In seven games, in a rematch of the 1986 World Series, your 2009 World Series Champions: the Boston Red Sox. Mike Pelfrey tossed a stinker in Game 7 and John Smoltz threw a gem against his old rivals to win the title in Boston.
If this all comes to fruition, It would be the third title for Boston this decade. The futility of the city of New York would also be proved once again, with Boston now reigning supreme over both the Yankees and Mets.
If the "most realistic game" is right, it looks like everyone will have to wait until 2010 to get another shot at Beantown.
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