I'm going to use bullet points instead of real sentences b/c I'm dying to get back to the game. 11 hours last Saturday, and a couple hours last sunday (and yesterday) just aint going to cut it. Superbowl is being skipped b/c quite frankly, it can't live up to this game.

Yankee specific awesomeness:

- They have both the new and old stadiums.

- They do the roll call for home games. Including the camera cutting away between batters to show a player (like Damon or Cano) waving to the crowd after their name is called.

- Red Sox fans HATE the Yankees, with a particular passion against Jeter, Arod, and Damon

- When Mariano comes out to close, the camera follows him from the bulpen, just like they do on ESPN. They even play a generic song that sounds like Enter Sandman

- Lots of yankee fans make it to road games in Baltimore, Tampa, etc.

- Everyone looks exactly as they do in real life. Both in terms of actual appearance (faces, body types), but also in stances, pitching motions, etc. Everyone. Andy stares from the tip of his glove, Ian Kennedy does his Moose impression when coming out of the stretch, etc etc.


General awesomeness:

- Say a pitcher has a B+ fastball and an B- slider. On any given game, there's variation, so that the fastball might start at a B, but the slider at a B+. Then, within the game, if you develop the fastball and throw it for strikes, it will get better. But if it gets hit, it will drop. So there's game strategy as to what to throw, and when.

- the computer learns your tendencies, both with hitting and pitching.

- you need to have plate discipline, or you are doomed.

- you can guess pitch location (nine choices, upper left, upper, upper right, etc etc) and pitch type (a typical starter will have 4-5 pitches and a reliever will have 3ish). So each pitch gives you a 1 in 36 chances of being perfect. The strike zone will glow in unique ways depending on which (if any) element you get right. Sooooo much strategy involved in that. With a power hitter, i'm looking high and tight for a 4-seem fastball. Behind in the count, i might look down in the strikezone. etc etc.

- The video presentation is just amazing. Animations are fluid and natural. Turning a double play is beautiful. Sometimes, if you really crush a homer, the camera lingers on the hitter instead of following the ball. I can't explain it, but this game has NAILED what it's like to watch a game on TV.

- You set ticket prices, tv contracts, building facilities like saunas, pay for scouts, decide who to scout, take out loans if need be, etc etc etc. Overwhelming number of choices.

- hitting a walk off home run is one of the most fun things i've ever experienced. There were no pies to the face, but the celebration at home plate was great none the less.

- YOU CAN UPLOAD SONGS INTO THE GAME. So, as soon as I'm done typing, I'm going to put in the real Enter Sandman and set it as Mariano's entrance music. Jeter's going to get Empire State of Mind, and then i'm going to spend a few hours to think of something good for Arod.

- You can fastfoward the game in seconds. Pushing up on the cross pad pauses the game AND gives you the most used options at that moment. So if you are pitching, you can go instantly to the bulpen to warm someone up or you can "skip to the next half inning"

- different umpires have different tendencies. And they mess up from time to time!

- When pitching, you can't be perfect. Aiming for the corner might result in being way off the plate. Some of that is random, but it's also based on the skill. Pitching is like old school tiger woods games. First tap starts the meter, second tap decides the power, and third tap decides accuracy.

- pitching from the stretch is much more difficult, as it should be!

- Bah, I'm boring myself, i must go back and play!