MLB 2002 (PRE-OWNED)

MLB 2002 also sounds just about the same as MLB 2001--with one huge, huge difference. Vin Scully's play-by-play and Dave Campbell's color commentary are both much smoother this year. In particular, Scully's repertoire mixes and mingles a greater diversity of player names and colloquialisms, resulting in such phrases as "Erstad tripled last time up" and "At the plate, Adam Kennedy. He struck out in his last at bat." Once again, Campbell plays the sidekick to Scully's deadpan, a situation that creates a faked television-style experience--even if Campbell's prattle is just as painfully mind-numbing as it is on real TV. The fact that MLB 2002 isn't much different from last year's release in terms of graphics and sound isn't too terrible. While more detail in the stands would have been nice, baseball is still mainly a game of strategy and statistics. To that end, MLB 2002 is definitely geared toward the "sim" crowd of video game baseball fans. The mode screen includes a plethora of fantasy baseball mainstays, including exhibition, season, all-star, playoff, spring training, and home run derby game options. Once again, MLB 2002's spring training mode isn't just a six-game foray into tiny cornfields, but a career-building experience in which you'll hopefully lift a rookie player from the depths of the minors into the glory of "the show." Along the way, should you collect enough points that is, you may find yourself voted into the All-Star Game or earning bonuses for a variety of awards, including the Rolaids Relief Man, Player of the Week, and MVP honors. In all, the game includes more than 900 different athletes drawn from all 30 MLB teams and their minor league affiliates.