Diamond Dynasty - 2nd Half Heroes Vida Blue and Veteran Michael Brantley

In The Show Shop today, we get Headliners Set 6 2nd Half Heroes Vida Blue, and in the Other Programs tab we get the Houston Astros City Connect Program with a Veteran Michael Brantley as a reward. 2nd Half Heroes Vida Blue replaces Breakout Eric Davis in Headliners packs, and the Houston Astros City Connect Program adds into the Faces of the Franchise Program that is getting closer to ending.

Headliners Set 6 – 2nd Half Heroes Vida Blue

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

With the starting pitcher rankings remaining in flux, every 90+ overall starter probably deserves at least a cursory glance right now. In theory, this 2nd Half Heroes Vida Blue could easily be one of the top 10 starters in the game right now. Blue is a known commodity in DD at this point, and his hard fastball and unique windup make him potentially hard to go up against. He does not come with a sinker or cutter, but his changeup and curve do provide a big speed differential with his two fastballs, and the slider can be a big pitch for him as well.

Overall, the H/9 being at 86 and him not having any sort of major quirks or elite control perhaps keep him out of the top tier, but I would think this card could compete with a diamond Corey Kluber or the Live Series Jacob deGrom.

Houston Astros City Connect Program

First off, I really like these uniforms. I think the City Connect uniforms overall have been one of the few smart moves by MLB in recent times, and it indirectly helps out DD as well with these little programs, which is cool. This is a relatively quick program with missions, moments, and exchanges. Like the Washington National City Connect Program, you will get a player during the program as well, this time a Veteran Michael Brantley.

This was originally supposed to be a Charlie Morton card, so some folks are disappointed it was changed. That said, Brantley has a sweet swing, and this card will be quite solid in the field and against RHP. There are a ton of good outfielders in the game, so this is maybe just a bench bat, but it’s still worth doing the program to get this card.

Moments

The first moment is worth 5 points, the others are worth 4 points.

• Space City
  • Difficulty: Rookie
  • Tally 2 hits
• Houston Finds Their Fit
  • Difficulty: Rookie
  • Tally 4 total bases
  • Do not give up 2 runs
• New Jersey In The Closet?
  • Difficulty: Rookie
  • Tally 2 XBH
  • Do not give up 2 runs
• Dr. Smooth
  • Difficulty: Veteran
  • Tally 2 hits
• Astros Finest
  • Difficulty: Veteran
  • Tally 2 hits
• Buzzer Beater
  • Difficulty: Rookie
  • Hit 1 HR

Yes, SDS did name the Altuve HR moment Buzzer Beater.

Missions

• 500 PxP with Veteran Michael Brantley (10 points)
• 250 PxP with Astros (2 points)
• 500 PxP with Astros (3 points)
• 1,000 PxP with Astros (5 points)
• 1,500 PxP with Astros (7 points)

Exchanges

• Exchange Astros (3 points)
• Exchange AL West players (6 points)

Rewards

• 10 points – The Show pack
• 20 points – Astros universal profile icon
• 30 points – 1,000 stubs, Veteran Michael Brantley
• 40 points – 500 stubs, diamond Space City bat
• 50 points – 1,000 stubs, Astros Space City Connect uniforms