On September 12, Sony dropped the first of what will be several September Spotlight Drop Programs and pack sets in MLB The Show 25. All of those will contribute towards unlocking the final Lightnings for this year’s game. One of those players is Jorge Polanco, who had a great September and earned himself the final in-season Lightning for 2025. The other is former NL MVP Ronald Acuna Jr.
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Lightning & Retro Lightning
Much like other months, there is a September Lightning & Retro Lightning. Individuals will need to collect the Spotlights at the end of each drop for the in-season Lightning, and Spotlights from packs for the Retro.
The Lightning for September is a 99 OVR Jorge Polanco.
To get Polanco, the four 99 OVR Spotlights at each drop program — 99 OVR Mangum, Steer, Bibee, and Marsh — will be needed for the collection.
As for the Retro Lightning, it’s a 99 OVR Ronald Acuna Jr.
You’ll need to collect eight September Spotlights from the packs to get Acuna Jr. At three, one will unlock a September Spotlight pack that’ll help along the way.
Since this is the final month of the 2025 MLB regular season, these will also be the last Lightnings for The Show 25.
Drop 4 program
First, a look at the September Drop 4 program, the last one for ’25:
- 5 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 10 Points: 5,000 XP
- 15 Points: July Spotlight Drop pack (ANY)
- 20 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Matt Svanson
- 25 Points: July Spotlight Drop pack (ANY)
- 30 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Gabriel Moreno
- 35 Points: Lightning bat skin
- 40 Points: September Spotlight Drop 1 pack
- 45 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Kyle Bradish
- 50 Points: September Spotlight Drop 2 pack
- 55 Points: 10,000 XP
- 60 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Brett Baty
- 65 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 70 Points: September Spotlight Drop 3 pack
- 75 Points: Home Run Derby X Choice Pack
- 80 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Spencer Horwitz
- 85 Points: September Spotlight Drop 4 pack
- 90 Points: 10,000 XP
- 95 Points: Spetember Spotlight pack (ANY)
- 100 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Jake Mangum
And, a look at the cards in this program:
Matt Svanson
Gabriel Moreno
Kyle Bradish
Brett Baty
Spencer Horwitz
Jake Mangum
How to make progress
Now, a look at the tasks:
- Complete seven Moments (28 combined pts. – 4 pts. each)
- Complete OPTIONAL Extreme Moment (80 pts.) – Tally 13 total bases with Michael Busch in one game on All-Star
- Drop 4 Missions:
- Tally 750 PXP with September Drop 4 Topps Now and Spotlight Series players (10 pts.)
- Tally five strikeouts with 99 OVR Svanson (6 pts.)
- Tally eight total bases with 99 OVR Moreno (6 pts.)
- Tally five strikeouts with 99 OVR Bradish (6 pts.)
- Tally two home runs with 99 OVR Baty (6 pts.)
- Tally three extra-base hits with 99 OVR Horwitz (6 pts.)
- General Missions:
- Tally 500 PXP with any Topps Now & Spotlight cards (5 pts.) (REPEATABLE)
- Tally 12 stolen bases with Spotlight Series players (10 pts.)
- Tally 10 home runs with Spotlight Series players (10 pts.)
- Tally 36 hits with any hutters (12 pts.)
- Tally 23 RBI with any players (12 pts.)
- Tally 26 strikeouts with any pitchers (12 pts.)
- OPTIONAL Collections:
- Collect 97 OVR Topps Now Bradley Rodriguez, Hunter Barco, Trevor McDonald, and Luis Garcia Jr. (20 pts.)
- Collect 99 OVR Spotlight Ivan Herera, Romy Gonzalez, Grant Taylor, Stephen Kolek, and Coby Mayo (80 pts.)
As per other Spotlight programs, one could buy the Topps Now & Spotlight cards in packs to expedite the grind. However, many of the missions don’t require a lot of manual work. Additionally, three of the six general stat missions are generic and don’t require the use of Topps Now/Spotlight items.
Drop 3 program
Here’s the Drop 3 program path:
- 5 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 10 Points: 97 OVR Topps Now Jordan Lawlar
- 15 Points: April Spotlight Drop 2 pack
- 20 Points: 97 OVR Topps Now Dominic Canzone
- 25 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 30 Points: Ballin’ is a Habit pack
- 35 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 40 Points: 5,000 XP
- 45 Points: September Spotlight Drop 3 pack
- 50 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Spencer Steer
Jordan Lawlar
Dominic Canzone
Spencer Steer
How to make progress
- Complete seven Moments (21 combined pts. – 3 pts. each)
- Complete OPTIONAL Extreme Moment (30 pts.) – Hit three home runs in one game with Dominic Canzone on Hall of Fame difficulty
- Drop 3 Missions:
- Tally 500 PXP with September Drop 3 Topps Now and Spotlight Series players (10 pts.)
- Tally two home runs with 97 OVR Canzone (4 pts.)
- Tally three hits with 97 OVR Lawlar (4 pts.)
- Tally five strikeouts with 99 OVR Spotlight Tanner Bibee (4 pts.)
- Stat Missions:
- Tally nine RBU with primary catchers (5 pts.)
- Tally five home runs with primary outfielders (LF, CF, RF) (5 pts.)
- Tally five stolen bases with primary middle infielders (2B, SS) (5 pts.)
- Tally 15 hits with any players (7 pts.)
- Tally 15 strikeouts with any players (7 pts.)
- OPTIONAL Collections:
- Collect 97 OVR Topps Now Nacho Alvarez Jr., Trey Yesavage, and Bryce Eldridge (15 pts.)
- Collect 99 OVR Spotlight Carter Jensen and Emmet Sheehan (35 pts.)
Drop 2 program
These are the rewards in the Drop 2 program path:
- 5 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 10 Points: 97 OVR Topps Now Connelly Early
- 15 Points: April Spotlight Drop 2 pack
- 20 Points: 97 OVR Topps Now Harry Ford
- 25 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 30 Points: Ballin’ is a Habit pack
- 35 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 40 Points: 5,000 XP
- 45 Points: September Spotlight Drop 2 pack
- 50 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Tanner Bibee
And, a look at the program cards:
Connelly Early
Harry Ford
Tanner Bibee
How to make progress
- Complete seven Moments (21 combined pts. – 3 pts. each)
- Complete OPTIONAL Extreme Moment (30 pts.) – Get on base nine times with Tigers without an out recorded on Rookie difficulty
- Drop 2 Missions:
- Tally 500 PXP with September Drop 2 Topps Now and Spotlight Series players (10 pts.)
- Tally three strikeouts with 97 OVR Early (4 pts.)
- Tally six total bases with 97 OVR Ford (4 pts.)
- Tally three extra-base hits with 99 OVR Spotlight Brandon Marsh (4 pts.)
- Stat Missions:
- Tally 10 strikeouts with starting pitchers (SP) (5 pts.)
- Tally nine RBI with primary outfielders (LF, CF, RF) (5 pts.)
- Tally four home runs with primary catchers (5 pts.)
- Tally 10 home runs with any players (7 pts.)
- Get 15 strikeouts with any players (7 pts.)
- OPTIONAL Collections:
- Collect 97 OVR Topps Now Blaine Crim, Andrew Monasterio, & Slade Cecconi (15 pts.)
- Collect 99 OVR Spotlight Patrick Bailey and Michael Helman (35 pts.)
Drop 1 program
This is the September Spotlight Drop 1 path in MLB The Show 25:
- 5 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 10 Points: 97 OVR Topps Now Sal Stewart
- 15 Points: April Spotlight Drop 2 pack
- 20 Points: 97 OVR Topps Now Brandon Sproat
- 25 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 30 Points: Ballin’ is a Habit pack
- 35 Points: MLB The Show 25 pack
- 40 Points: 5,000 XP
- 45 Points: September Spotlight Drop 1 pack
- 50 Points: 99 OVR Spotlight Brandon Marsh
Here’s a look at the three cards in the program:
Sal Stewart
Brandon Sproat
Brandon Marsh
How to make progress
Now, a look at the tasks:
- Complete eight Moments (24 combined pts. – 3 pts. each)
- Complete OPTIONAL Extreme Moment (30 pts.) – Score four runs with the Orioles before recording an out on All-Star difficulty
- Drop 1 Missions:
- Tally 500 PXP with September Drop 1 Topps Now and Spotlight Series players (10 pts.)
- Tally three strikeouts with 97 OVR Sproat (4 pts.)
- Tally three hits with 97 OVR Stewart (4 pts.)
- August Spotlight PXP Missions:
- Tally five hits with Spotlight Jakob Marsee from August (4 pts.)
- Tally three extra-base hits with August Lightning Brice Turang (4 pts.)
- Stat Missions:
- Tally six innings with starting pitchers (SP) (5 pts.)
- Tally eight extra-base hits with primary corner infielders (1B, 3B) (5 pts.)
- Tally five home runs with primary center fielders (5 pts.)
- Tally 20 hits with any players (7 pts.)
- Get 15 strikeouts with any players (7 pts.)
- OPTIONAL Collections:
- Collect 97 OVR Topps Now Emmanuel Rivera, Mitch Farris, and Cam Devanney (15 pts.)
- Collect 99 OVR Spotlight Brad Keller and Daylen Lile (35 pts.)
It should be noted that two of the Drop 1 Missions feature 99 OVR Jakob Marsee and Brice Turang from the August Drop 5 & Lightning Collection, respectively.
Check out more of our gaming coverage, including a look at the Moonshot 2.0 Program & Collection.