It’s a new year of MLB The Show, as MLB The Show 26 is live worldwide. That means new cards and a new meta to navigate as Diamond Dynasty players roll with lower overall cards for the first few months. Now that we’ve gotten time with the game, here’s our rankings of the best cards in the game, sorted by position.
Contents
Infielders
Let’s take a look at our power ranking list for the best catchers in MLB The Show 26:
C
- 91 OVR All-Star Adley Rutschman
- 90 OVR WBC Will Smith
- 90 OVR Live Series Cal Raleigh
- 94 OVR WBC Roy Campanella
- 88 OVR WBC William Contreras
We’ll start with the catchers, where a 91 OVR Adley Rutschman sits as the top option among backstops.
Yet again, it appears that switch-hitters will have a prominent role in the Diamond Dynasty meta. And Rutschman, who meets that criteria, has been a long-known favorite thanks to his power and ability to hit from both sides. This card also has good Pop Time, a new attribute added to catchers this year.
Aside from Rutschman, there are more expensive options, including the Live Series Raleigh and even 94 OVR Roy Campanella, the Dodgers’ Live Series reward.
However, don’t sleep on the 90 OVR Will Smith, a card that seems to put everything in play based upon our time in the game.
1B
- 99 OVR Signature Albert Pujols
- 90 OVR New Threads Jorge Polanco
- 90 OVR WBC Munetaka Murakami
- 89 OVR WBC Carlos Santana
- 90 OVR New Threads Pete Alonso
Albert Pujols should be on top of this list for some time.
Pujols is the NL Live Series Collection card, marking another year where a first baseman is the Live Series completion card in the Senior Circuit (Gil Hodges was in MLB The Show 25). If you can get past Pujols’ quirky swing, it’s a very valuable card.
There are a lot of options at first, right now. Many Jolt cards released at launch were first basemen, as Wally Joyner, Jim Thome, David Ortiz, and Jason Giambi were among the players to receive an 88 OVR when the game came out.
The 90 OVR Murakami card is a monster. And Carlos Santana, a switch-hitter, is also here in the top five.
Plus, the New Threads content drop added Jorge Polanco and Pete Alonso.
2B
- 90 OVR Live Series Ketel Marte
- 89 OVR WBC Ozzie Albies
- 93 OVR Awards Dustin Pedroia
- 89 OVR St. Patrick’s Day Alfonso Soriano
- 88 OVR Spring Breakout JJ Wetherholt
If you have the roughly 100,000 Stubs needed to buy Ketel Marte, do it.
Marte’s Speed isn’t great, which does hurt up the middle defensively. But offensively, Marte is the clear-cut top option, and this 90 OVR should be for time in the game’s lifecycle. Seven Quirks, including Dead Red, and fantastic all-around Contact and Power.
For those who don’t have the 90 OVR Marte, his 85 OVR WBC card is a cheaper alternative. Or, go with 89 OVR Ozzie Albies, one of the many World Baseball Classic Collection cards.
3B
- 91 OVR Live Series Jose Ramirez
- 93 OVR Standout Graig Nettles
- 89 OVR WBC Didi Gregorius
- 91 OVR New Threads Bo Bichette
- 89 OVR WBC Junior Caminero
Like first base, there are plenty of options at the hot corner. What’s even wilder is that the 94 OVR WBC Maikel Garcia, a Collection reward, doesn’t even make this top five.
Jose Ramirez’s cards are very good. A small strike zone, a lot of Quirks, and strong all-around attributes. His 91 OVR Live Series checks all of those boxes.
Then, there are the heavy hitters, like Graig Nettles and Junior Caminero. The 89 OVR Didi Gregorius, a Program reward, is incredibly valuable, as that card also has shortstop as a secondary position.
SS
- 99 OVR Milestone Troy Tulowitzki
- 89 OVR Spring Breakout Leo De Vries
- 88 OVR Spring Breakout Jesus Made
- 90 OVR Live Series Francisco Lindor
- 89 OVR Live Series Corey Seager
Is the 99 OVR Troy Tulowitzki an end-game card? Probably not. But will it likely be the first shortstop option through the All-Star Game? Probably.
Every single one of Tulowitzki’s offensive attributes is over 100. And with 80 Speed and 85+ Fielding attributes all over the board, Tulo is a high-end option for a healthy chunk of the lifecycle.
Aside from Tulo, switch-hitters are littered across the top five. Leo De Vries and Jesus Made aren’t players who will break the bank. Those two cards also have good Speed and Fielding attributes.
Corey Seager may very well have a top-three swing in the game. However, a very low Speed attribute keeps Seager away from the top four. Speed is critical for middle infielders, particularly shortstops.
Outfielders
Now, let’s look at the top outfielders:
LF
- 90 OVR Live Series Juan Soto
- 89 OVR WBC Kyle Schwarber
- 94 OVR 2nd Half Manny Ramirez
- 89 OVR New Threads Brandon Nimmo
- 90 OVR New Threads Taylor Ward
Realistically speaking, a center fielder should be stuck in left field. Many of the top left fielders in this game, at least offensively, are better off as DHs, like Juan Soto and Kyle Schwarber.
The only reason why Soto and Schwarber are at the top of this list is that those two are that good with the twig.
Roman Anthony and Josue De Paula are sound options for those who want all-around left fielders.
CF
- 91 OVR WBC Julio Rodriguez
- 90 OVR St. Patrick’s Day Mike Trout
- 90 OVR WBC Pete Crow-Armstrong
- 90 OVR All-Star Andrew McCutchen
- 88 OVR WBC Jackson Chourio
The 91 OVR WBC Julio Rodriguez was the first Chase Pack card chaser in Diamond Dynasty. It is a very good card, with five Quirks (including Dead Red) and a well-balanced attribute list.
Mike Trout is always good in this game, although the Vision on his 90 OVR card is low.
For those looking for a cheap option, the 88 OVR Chourio is worth a look.
RF
- 92 OVR Breakout Ken Singleton
- 90 OVR WBC Ronald Acuna Jr.
- 92 OVR WBC Fernando Tatis Jr.
- 90 OVR Prime Jeromy Burnitz
- 89 OVR WBC Hyun-Min Ahn
New Legend Ken Singleton was a great switch-hitter in his day. Now, Diamond Dynasty players can get their hands on him as the NL East Live Series reward.
The Speed on this card is low. However, all the attributes are sound.
After Singleton, 90 OVR Ronald and 92 OVR Tatis Jr. round out the top three.
Jeromy Burnitz, the NL Central Live Series reward, is a strong Power option.
Starting Pitchers
Let’s take a look at the best starting pitchers:
- 99 OVR Awards Felix Hernandez
- 90 OVR WBC Clayton Kershaw
- 91 OVR Live Series Tarik Skubal
- 88 OVR Jolt Al Leiter
- 89 OVR Live Series Garrett Crochet
- 85 OVR Live Series Hunter Greene
- 88 OVR Jolt Corey Kluber
- 87 OVR WBC James Paxton
- 87 OVR 2nd Half Roy Halladay
- 89 OVR Live Series Zack Wheeler
For those who didn’t experience what 99 OVR Milestone Felix Hernandez was like in Diamond Dynasty, this is nearly the same type of card — although the H/9 are much higher.
This is a very interesting list, as there are very few pitchers in the game with Outlier on the four-seam right now. In fact, the only one on this list is 85 OVR Hunter Greene. Pitchers like Paul Skenes, Shohei Ohtani, and Tarik Skubal don’t have it, even though all three have had it in the past.
That creates a very hitter-friendly meta at the moment. After all, Randy Johnson and John Donaldson will be around at some point — just not yet.
Go with pitchers who can get funky and give hitters different looks with different pitchers. Sinker/cutter/slider pitchers are still en vogue, making Al Leiter and Corey Kluber options. 90 OVR WBC Clayton Kershaw is about as close as we’ll get to 99 OVR Milestone Kershaw from last year.
Relief Pitchers
- 89 OVR Live Series Mason Miller
- 89 OVR Live Series Aroldis Chapman
- 89 OVR WBC Andres Munoz
- 87 OVR All-Star Zack Britton
- 87 OVR New Threads Ryan Helsley
- 88 OVR Jolt Billy Wagner
- 86 OVR WBC Abner Uribe
- 87 OVR WBC Adam Ottavino
- 87 OVR WBC Kenley Jansen
- 88 OVR Jolt Darren O’Day
Much like with starters, a lot of relievers right now don’t have Outlier. Jolt Billy Wagner, Rob Dibble, and Lee Smith don’t have it.
Mason Miller does, making him a premium relief pitcher option. Aroldis Chapman has Outlier in his sinker.
Aside from those, heavy sinkerballers can’t hurt. Andres Munoz, Abner Uribe, and Zack Britton fit that mold.
While not listed in the top 10, Adrian Morejon’s 81 OVR Live Series is a good budget option.
This article will be updated throughout the year as new cards are added to Diamond Dynasty.
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