Diamond Dynasty - Carlos Delgado Comes to MLB The Show

Today is a rather unique day for Diamond Dynasty because we get the introduction of Carlos Delgado in MLB The Show 22, but it comes within a Chase Set 2 pack, which some will be a little chapped about due to the “implications” of it for the mode as a whole. One of the calling cards of The Show has been that essentially all the “best” cards feel attainable either via grinding or not too crazy of a price. How true that really has ever been is up for debate because certain Live Series cards etc. have always been expensive and hard to snag for “no money spent” players, but collections felt like a different animal than individual cards for the community as a whole. That said, unless you work the market for stubs or get extremely lucky, this Carlos Delgado feels tricky to get at this moment and time, so let’s talk about the card and whether it’s worth all the consternation.

Takashi Okazaki Carlos Delgado

First off, great card art as expected from this series. As for the card itself, this is strictly a 1B and that LF secondary position should not be humored. As a 97 overall, he comes in below 99 overall Frank Thomas in the 1B category, and I think that’s a fair placement for him overall. He’s probably the second-best 1B and one of the top five cards available now in DD as a whole. There are a couple collection cards I would take over him, and Live Series Trout probably is above him as well, but otherwise he’s in elite company for now.

Of course, being a Chase Set 2 player also means Carlos Delgado is only available in random Chase packs that will come in The Show packs, or you can get one guaranteed Chase pack (but, again, not a guaranteed Delgado) in the 75K Show bundle in The Show Shop. Ultimately, I think the discussions around how SDS is “changing” or trying to get after “no money spent” players is mostly overblown here. Pujols ended up being around 100K, and I suspect Delgado will end up around 150K or so before too long. This is not a cheap price, but this is also a top-end card that still feels attainable for everyone playing a decent amount of The Show. And if you’re working the market, you should have well over 150K at any given time if you’re decent at it.

If anything, I think the only thing that has really changed this year for full-on DD loons like myself is it’s taking a little more time to amass large amounts of stubs. Otherwise, I don’t feel appreciably different about pursuing and getting any and every single card I want, and Delgado is no exception.

For the more normal user, yes, this will be an extremely rare card to find on your own — probably on the level of packing a Trout if not more rare considering I’ve only even found one Chase pack so far (and didn’t hit on Pujols in it). Regardless, I still like the idea of Chase packs, and the excitement of finding one within a random The Show pack is a delightful feeling. At the same time, you should not be going full “Wonka Bar Golden Ticket” and ripping pack after pack to try and find a Chase pack. If it happens, it happens should be the general mindset.

All in all, I think part of the backlash is just a general feeling that “any change is bad” with some parts of the community, but my excitement to have Delgado in the game outweighs any feelings of resentment about how he was delivered — especially considering there will be other versions of Delgado.

Headliners Set 12 – 2nd Half Heroes Ketel Marte

The other card released today that should probably not go overlooked is 2nd Half Heroes Ketel Marte. This card could be a real gem as it’s immediately one of the top five options in center field, and gets a huge boost for having major defensive versatility. He has elite contact from both sides of the plate and is a switch hitter with a really nice swing. I see basically no downsides with this card besides non-elite power, and he just feels like a perfect two-hole hitter or super-utility player on extremely juiced up teams.

The odds on Headliners packs to pull a diamond are 1:10 (as always), albeit that diamond might not be 2nd Half Heroes Ketel Marte. In addition, this year you can buy one pack of the Headliners choice pack, which gives you 1:3 odds of pulling a 90+ overall diamond (and of course costs more stubs).