MLB 14 The Show: Road to the Show Thread

[kmoser]

Made a SS based off of Tulo. I liked the all around type ratings he had so that why I chose him. I made him 18 y/o as well.
In the Showcase I didn't record a single hit but played some pretty good defense and was drafted by the Twins with a C potential in the 5th round
I didn't like that so I decided to to go to JUCO for two years. In my second Showcase I had only 2 hits and played solid defense as well as ran the bases well. I was projected to go Mid 1st and got taken 17th (? I think) in the first round to the Washington Nationals. I signed and hit my first AA HR in my second game!

[BubbaWhatson]

i started this years RTTS back in late may by making a speedy 2nd basemen and had a terrible performance at the showcase. ended up getting drafted by the Padres I didnt really want to play for them so i figured i would give the showcase one more try. i did equally as bad the second time around and got drafted by the Padres again this time agreeing to sign with the team.

I had a decent first year in AA hit .288 with 6 homers and 18 SB. Nothing special but to my surprise i ended up getting an invite to spring training and made the team. i began the season on the bench but after the first month or so i got the starting job with the team moving Gyrko to third. i had a good rookie year hitting .294 with 5 homeruns and 28 SB. Things were looking up.

Then my second year in the majors rolls along and i cant seem to hit for my life hitting in the .190s after the first month i eventually get benched and then traded to the Reds. The trade kind of refreshed me and i found my stroke playing for the playoff bound Reds finishing with 36 SB 12 HR and a .245 avg. i did however strike out 128 times in 502 ABs.

My third year was terrible i hit .224 with 12 HRs and 21 SB i struck out 129 times in 465 ABs. I play on dynamic difficulty and by the end of year it was back on rookie. i dont know what happened i got stuck in a rut and i could not get out. i was getting just enough training points to maintain my stats so i couldnt improve my player at all. at the end of the season the Reds did not offer me a contract and i signed with the blue jays out of spring training

My fourth year with the Blue Jays was more of the same. i sucked and at the deadline they traded for Cano which effectively landed me on the bench. i still managed to get 355 ABs on the year because i hit leadoff but i only hit .245 with 6 hrs and 22 SB. my guy was stuck as this mediocre utility infielder. i thought about starting fresh but i started this guy when i first got the game and we had been through so many ups and downs i couldn't abandon him. after the season the blue jays did not offer me a deal i received two offers from teams that had over 100 losses and decided not to sign and test my luck in a spring training tryout.

i decided to try out for the braves who were a 97 win team but whose best 2nd basemen on the roster was 71 overall. before spring training i switched up my batting stance and changed my approach at the plate a little trying to be more patient. it worked as i finished spring training hitting .315. it was enough as i made the team as the starting 2nd basemen.

Now im 28 games into my 5th year playing on my 4th team and im tearing it up hitting .345 with 5 homeruns and 6 SB. My guy is finally starting to establish himself as a hitter and boy is it satisfying. my attributes are also starting to improve nicely with my contact vs lefties and righties are both and 81 and my power for both is a 60. i maxed out my baserunning speed and BR aggressiveness.all my other stats are in the high 70s to mid 80s. i think the quick call up is what really screwed me bc i i didnt really have time to develop my guy which led to a rough start to my career. now hopefully i can make a difference and finally make an allstar team

[timmermac]

I made a CF based on Mike Trout that got drafted by the Yankees. My problem, midway through June, is that I'm not even playing in half of Trenton's games.

Edit: I've played in 25 of Trenton's 78 games so far this season, and I've not been injured in any way. This almost has me ready to start another RTTS.

[ReporterJoe]

I am about to make a road to the show pitcher, and I am going to be posting frequently on how he is doing. I am going to post it like I am an ESPN sports caster and am relaying information on the pitcher in an ESPN session. His name is going to be Julio "The Kid" Sorvala and he is going to be a hard-throwing, multi-pitch starter. Stick around for stat updates and even maybe a little life story! It will surely be interesting. He is an international player, and he knows no english when he comes to america to try to make it in the bigs. He is 6'5 185 lbs.

[ReporterJoe]

Diamondbacks draft hard-throwing left-handed Sorvala, who speaks no english:

Here we are, right after the draft and a very interesting pick by the Arizona Diamondbacks to pick Julio Sorvala, an immigrant from Mexico, who speaks no english mind you in the first round, with the 15th overall pick. He is a hard-throwing left-handed starter at only 18 years old. He is 6'5 and has a great pitchers body. His stats in the showcase look like this: 3 G 9 IP 3 H 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0.00 ERA 6 K. Sorvala obviously feels like he needs some developing though, as he has shocked the world and decided not to go into the minors just yet. He wants to play 2 years of Junior College ball and better prepare himself for the MLB, and perhaps learn some english along the way. We will keep you updated on this story.

[ReporterJoe]

Sorvala back in action:

Remember a story 2 years ago with a mexican pitcher who was taken in the first round despite knowing no english? Well he's back in this years draft. He had a below-than-average showcase, honestly his stats make it seem like he did worse than he really did, but still a rather unimpressive showing for the kid. His fastball: unhittable! It's his offspeed pitches that need some serious work. Those pitches were getting pounded by the opposition. He will need to work on that if he wants to play at the big league level. His stats looked like this: 3 G 9 IP 8 R 5 ER 5.00 ERA 8 K 0 BB. He was taken in the first round again though, this time by the St. Louis Cardinals with the 30th pick. Julio looks to jump right into the minors with a start in the first game of the season for the AA Springfield Cardinals. We will keep you updated.

[ReporterJoe]

AA Debut:

AA pitcher Julio Sorvala threw a beauty today as he made his debut in the minor leagues. Sorvala, who moved to America only 2 years ago to pursue a baseball career, tossed 7 innings, and allowed only 1 run. That run came in the first, but from the on Sorvala was steller in leading his team to a 7-2 win and receiving player of the game honors. Sorvala also did something never before done by a pitcher in his debut. His first at bat in the minor leagues, on the first pitch, he hit a blooping single with runners on second and third to give himself 2 RBIs and an early lead. Sorvala was quoted as saying "I love baseball. America is very good. I can not wait to play in major leagues." Still got some work to do on his english, but his work on the bump was spot on. His command of the zone was shaky at times, but he mostly finished some batters off with his fastball early on in the game. Miraculously, Sorvala began to establish his slider later on in the game. Around the 6th inning, he started using his slider consistently and striking a few players out with it. And in his last inning, he even got a few Ks with his change-up. He seems to be figuring out how to use his off speed pitches. His final game stats were: 7 IP 1 ER 9 H 0 BB 8 K 1.29 ERA 1.29 WHIP. Sorvala looks to make his next start Tuesday at home against Corpus Christi.