From MLB Power Pros Wiki

Revision as of 22:39, 8 May 2008

Gameplay

Shuuto

What is it?

The shuuto is basically a two-seam fastball thrown with emphasis on lateral break. Wikipedia has a slightly different take.

Sightings

• The Japanese Power Pros gave Hiroki Kuroda of the LA Dodgers a Lv2 hard shuuto the last year he pitched in Japan (2007) and a Lv3 shuuto the year before. Watch his starts and you'll probably see him throw one.
• Cleveland Indians' reliever Masahide Kobayashi has a renowned shuuto that the Japanese Power Pros rated as a Lv3 hard shuuto over the last two years. He was even given a Lv5 hard shuuto following a great season in 2005!

Possible Origin of Term

Be warned this is merely a personal theory. In Japanese, shuuto is written in Katakana so it's obviously a transcription of a foreign word. According to the Neyer/James Guide to Pitchers^[1], inshoot was a 19th century baseball term used to describe fastballs that broke the opposite way of the incurve. Sometimes these two words were even used interchangeably. Back then there were no such words as curve, slider, changeup, etc. Maybe when baseball was first introduced to Japan in 1872, the words curves and shoots (according to the book, frequently used words to describe moving pitches back then) were imported and became the curve and shuuto pitch.

"Power Rating" in Box Score

Percentage of swings taken in Big Swing mode.

HBP getting counted as a BB in the Box score

This is a mistranslation rather than glitch; in Japanese baseball the there is a stat (sishikyû^[2]) that adds both that is more regularly used. It seems that when they ported the game they didn't re-write the code to distinguish BB and HBP, and only changed the label, leading to this inaccuracy.

Season Mode

Player Records Explained

Pitching

• Consecutive No-Runs - Consecutive Scoreless Innings Pitched
• No-Hitter, No-Runners - "No-Runners" is a mistranslation of "No Runs". Basically a No-No. Japanese baseball does not distinguish no hitters unless it's also a CG shutout.^[3]
• 0 Wins - Pitchers who recorded a win with 0 pitches (Example: Come into a tie game with 2 outs, runner picked off to end inning. Team goes on to win)
• 1 Win - Pitchers who recorded a win throwing just 1 pitch. For some reason, Japanese baseball makes a big deal out of these 0 pitch / 1 pitch records.
• 0 Saves - Pitchers who recorded a save throwing 0 pitches.
• 1 Save - Pitchers who recorded a save throwing just 1 pitch.
• 1 Loss - Pitchers who recorded a loss throwing just 1 pitch.
• Most Runs Suffered - Most runs given up in an outing. Includes unearned runs.

Hitting

• Consecutive Hits - Hitting streak (games)
• Consecutive On-Base - Consecutive games on base safely
• Consecutive No Hitter - Longest hitless streak (games)
• Most Base Hits - At a glance, redundant with "Most Hits". Mistranslation of "Most Total Bases In a Game".
• Most Double Play Hits - Most Double Plays Hit Into

Team Records → Single Game Records

• Game Winning Streak - This is the Current Winning Streak for the selected team.

Success Mode

Cultural References

Sarah and Becky meet for the first time

Becky asks how your character and Sarah know each other. Sarah answers "[your character] took something special of mine", to which your character and Becky react with a shocked expression, and Becky subsequently shows anger toward your character. This is because Sarah's remark can be interpreted as a euphemism popularized by a famous Japanese pop song from the 1970s.^[4] Of course, Sarah is too naive to make such innuendos.

Gundar Robots

Parody of Gundam robots.^[5] In Japan, the Gundam franchise is the equivalent of USA's Star Trek franchise.

Wild Pigs' Names Explained

• Yokozuna, Ozeki, Sekiwaké, Coms Bee (Komusubi), Jonny Dan (Jonidan) - Sumo wrestlers' ranks.^[6][7]
• Magé is the upside down pony tail wrestlers sport.^[8]
• Touch Eye (tachi-ai) - The initial charge between two sumo wrestlers at the beginning of a bout.^[9]
• Hanamichi - Path leading up to the sumo ring.
• Chang Kou (Chanko nabé)- Special stew sumo wrestlers eat^[10]

Why are Running and Throwing considered Stamina training menus for Pitchers?

Japanese pitchers typically build up stamina through extensive running and extended bullpen sessions. Yankee or Red Sox fans may heard about Kei Igawa running in the outfield^[11] or Daisuke Matsuzaka's 300 pitch bullpen sessions^[12].

Confusion over "Genius"

This comes from failing to provide different translations according to the different nuances of the following word:

天才 (tensai)
trans. brilliant mind // genius // giftedness // intellectual genius // mental giant // natural // person of genius // phenom // prodigy // rocket scientist // superbrain // wizard ^[13]

My choice of translations in bold:

• "Genius" : Bookworm Lv2 - Intellectual genius, Brainiac
• "Genius" : Annie's Arc - Rocket Scientist (?)
• "Genius" : In Patrick's profile - Whiz kid; Gifted
• "Genius" : Starting Stat type - Prodigy, Phenom

Shop Items

Necklaces

Some professional baseball players wear special metal or crystal necklaces believing they have therapeutic effects. Hideki Okajima's necklace has been a topic of discussion^[14], so you may have heard of them. The fad seems to have made its way to MLB.^[15][16]

Charms

These are modeled after traditional Japanese charms.^[17][18]

References

1. ↑ p16
2. ↑ http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fja.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2F%25E5%259B%259B%25E6%25AD%25BB%25E7%2590%2583&hl=en&ie=UTF8&sl=ja&tl=en Google Translation of Wikipedia
3. ↑ Japanese Wikipedia Babelfish Translation
4. ↑ Hito Natsu No Keiken
5. ↑ http://www.gundamofficial.com/
6. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Makuuchi
7. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonidan#Jonidan
8. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chonmage
9. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachi-ai
10. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chankonabe
11. ↑ Igawa's oddities, like heavy cardiovascular work on the day he pitches and throwing a baseball against a chain-link fence alone, drew some attention in the spring.
12. ↑ ...In past years with the Seibu Lions, he wouldn't ice even after his frequent 300-pitch bullpen sessions
13. ↑ http://eow.alc.co.jp/%C5%B7%BA%CD/EUC-JP/
14. ↑ Rotoworld.com Forums _ Fantasy Baseball Talk _ Dice K and Okajimas Necklaces
15. ↑ What are the Boston Red Sox Wearing? Phiten Titanium Necklaces
16. ↑ An agreement has been reach for Phiten to produce MLB authorized official health care goods to be used by 30 clubs across the US
17. ↑ [http://www.sonic.net/~anomaly/japan/mamoru.htm O-Mamori Japanese Protective Charms]
18. ↑ Charms are used for successful childbirth, passing examinations, safe driving, and the like