• Join SGO
  • Meet Our Team
  • Review Policy
Friday, March 31, 2023
  • Login
Sports Gamers Online
  • News
  • Features
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Previews
  • Esports
  • Games
PATREON
No Result
View All Result
Sports Gamers Online
  • News
  • Features
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Previews
  • Esports
  • Games
PATREON
No Result
View All Result
Sports Gamers Online
No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Features
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Previews
  • Esports
  • Games

Home » Games » A Look Back at MLB Front Office Manager

MLB Front Office Manager Logo

A Look Back at MLB Front Office Manager

Chris Studley by Chris Studley
Jan 25, 2021
Reading Time: 4 mins read
5 0
A A
0
6
SHARES
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterPost on Reddit

From 2005 to 2013, 2K Sports created a yearly game for MLB. For some, it was a game to play if MLB The Show didn’t appeal to them. For others (looking at you Xbox users), it was the only way for gamers to get their baseball fix.

However, 2K and MLB did develop other gamers outside of the MLB 2K franchise. From the arcade-style gameplay of The BIGS to the cartoonish looks of 2K Fantasy All-Stars, 2K did a good job of appealing to the interests of sports gamers. In fact, 2K took a crack at simulation-style games, releasing MLB Front Office Manager in 2009.

You might also like

SGO Weekly: MotoGP 23, Out of the Park Baseball 24, and more! (3/24/23 – 3/30/23)

MLB The Show 23 Review – From Foul Ball to Base Hit!

How to Qualify for the NBA 2K League

MLB Front Office Manager

Developed by 2K Sports and Blue Castle Games, MLB Front Office Manager put the player in the shoes of an MLB general manager. After customizing your character, the player can choose to be the GM for one of the 30 MLB teams and start work immediately after the 2008 World Series.

When looking back at this game, I remember feeling fascinated over the concept of it as there really wasn’t anything like it available on consoles. Sure, I could of played Franchise Mode on MLB 2K9 and pretend to be a GM, but this game was dedicated to being a game all about managing a baseball team

MLB Front Office Manager also featured something that others baseball sim games really couldn’t and that was input from an actual MLB general manager. Billy Beane, the then-current general manager of the Oakland Athletics, was an advisor for the creation of the game and also the “mentor” for a player’s character for the game. “You get to experience things like waivers…you learn exactly how the system works,” Beane said in an interview about the game in 2009.

Beane, an avid video gamer himself, saw the importance of video games in society and in sports communities. He wanted to make sure it was challenging and insightful because these types of games could play a major role in the future of many people. “People who play these games are bright people and they go on to be brighter successful people, and a few of these will be running baseball teams in the near future, I’m sure of it.”

No game really had that type of input, so MLB Front Office Manager was quite appealing to me, as I’m sure it was to others. The questions is, how was the game after launch?

The Good

MLB Front Office Manager was much more expansive than MLB 2K‘s franchise mode, and featured waivers, arbitration and even the Rule 5 Draft. In addition, the game featured amateur scouting in which players must allocate money for different regions in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. The game even included bidding wars for international players, something that even baseball sims today haven’t really been effective in creating for their games.

MLB Front Office Manager also featured online play, as gamers could join up with friends to compete against each other to build the best team. If gamers really wanted a challenge, they could choose the fantasy mode and start building their squad from scratch.

The game also featured a clean-looking home screen, where players can see the records of their team and minor league affiliates, along with pitching matchups. The game’s graphics and navigability were, for what it’s worth, pretty good and definitely a plus. However, that’s probably where the good of this game ends.

The graphics for MLB Front Office Manager were certainly one of the highlights of the game.

The Bad

Even though the game looked nice, there were quite a few flaws that were easily noticeable throughout the game. For one, the ratings system was flawed, as players that had high ratings and overalls one year would randomly see them drop so much the next year that they wouldn’t even be playable. And I’m not talking about MLB players that were regressing due to age, but players that were in their prime years were experiencing this. To say this was mind-boggling would be an understatement.

To go along with this, MLB Front Office Manager also featured a fairly incompetent AI. Top draft picks would go unsigned by the AI and fall into the free agency pool the following year. CPU teams that couldn’t properly manage their payroll would release players between three to six years of experience into free agency for some inexplicable reason. In addition, the trading system was pretty easy to handle as well, as it would usually be pretty easy to grab players and dump salaries.

10 Years Later

Even though the game had a lot of bugs, I thought the franchise had a lot of potential since it offered a lot that baseball sims at the time really did not. Unfortunately, 2K Sports did not come out with a second version, so this is all we have.

For those who played it, did you enjoy it? If not, would you like something like this on consoles today? Let us know in our comments sections, or on our social media channels.


Want to talk sports and/or games with the fastest growing community in gaming? Join the conversation by registering at the official Sports Gamers Online Forums, and check out our Twitter and Facebook pages as well as our growing YouTube Channel!

Tags: 2K SportsfrontpagenewsMLBmlb front office managerMLB The Show
Share2Tweet2Share
Previous Post

SGO Inside Drive (1/14/19): Pumped BMX Pro Trailer, New MOBA Switchblade, And More!

Next Post

NBA, NBPA and 2K Extend Partnership

Chris Studley

Chris Studley

Chris Studley is an avid gamer, and primarily plays the Madden and NHL franchises. Chris is currently a student at St. John's University and is working towards his Master of Professional Studies degree in Sport Management. Chris is also the founder and editor-in-chief of the baseball website FHFreeway.com.

Recommended For You

MotoGP 23 OOTP 24 SGO Weekly
Sports

SGO Weekly: MotoGP 23, Out of the Park Baseball 24, and more! (3/24/23 – 3/30/23)

Mar 31, 2023
MLB The Show 23 Review – From Foul Ball to Base Hit!
Baseball

MLB The Show 23 Review – From Foul Ball to Base Hit!

Mar 31, 2023
Next Post
NBA 2K19 Kyrie Irving

NBA, NBPA and 2K Extend Partnership

Upcoming Games
March 24 Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch MLB The Show 23
April 7 Xbox Series X|S, PS5 EA Sports PGA Tour
October 13 Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5, PC, Nintendo Switch WRC Generations
March 31 PC Franchise Hockey Manager 9
March 31 Nickelodeon Kart Racers 3: Slime Speedway
VIEW ALL GAMES

Recent reviews

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Meet Our Team
  • Join SGO
  • Privacy Policy
  • Review Policy
  • Store
Contact us: [email protected]

© 2014-2022 SGO Entertainment

  • News
  • Features
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Previews
  • Esports
  • Games

© 2014-2022 SGO Entertainment

Welcome Back!

Sign In with Facebook
Sign In with Google
OR

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In