Franchise mode might not be the most popular mode in the MLB The Show franchise, that title belongs to Diamond Dynasty, but it's certainly one of the most beloved ones.
It's a game mode that allows you to become the GM of one of the MLB franchises, giving you control over all the sports and financial decisions of the team.
The game mode has a loyal fanbase and one that is not afraid to voice its opinion, which hasn't been very positive in the past couple of years. Fans have been praying for Franchise mode to get a revamp, as they feel the changes have become incremental as of late.
So will MLB The Show 25 provide fans with what they hope for? Or will we see yet another year of minimal changes? Let's find out.
The Year of Free Agency
When it comes to Franchise mode in MLB The Show 25, Free Agency is the main theme. The feature received major improvements, with the Free Agency logic being significantly improved, and star signings having a big impact on the market and where other players will sign.
The Big Board was also introduced. This new feature allows you to choose which players to attack in the Off-season, see how motivated to sign they are, their contract demands, the other teams the player is talking to, how much cap space you have, on what week of Free Agency you are in, and more.
When weighing their options, free agents will consider team quality, positional competition, and their fit in the team. In every week of Free Agency, you will have the chance to increase players' motivation to sign with your team.
To do that, you will have weekly resources you can use. However, these resources aren't unlimited, so you will need to think carefully about how you will spend them.
If you offer a bad contract to a player, that can make the player completely uninterested in signing with you. Some free agents will give you a last-minute chance to sign them before they put pen to paper elsewhere, and others will even reach out to you.
Free agency contracts logic was also improved, making it so that the salaries reflect the true value of a player. This means you now have realistic salaries, and that those contracts can have huge implications in the long term, such as untradeable contracts.
An Ocean of Incremental Changes
MLB The Show 25 will also improve many other Franchise mode features. Trades logic was vastly improved, which is good to see, and new pre-game graphics were added.
There are also many in-game improvements, with game matchup information, and the introduction of league storylines, such as standings, Rookie of the Year rankings, and much more.
While these additions aren't revolutionary, and Online Franchise is yet to make its highly anticipated return, they still improve the mode, making it more immersive and realistic than before.