Okay, here’s my take on how to slide in MLB The Show 23, shared as a personal experience blog post:
Alright, so I wanted to get better at baserunning in MLB The Show 23. Specifically, I was awful at sliding. I kept getting tagged out, and it was costing me runs, big time. I figured it was time to actually figure this out.
First thing I did was just jump into a game. I wanted to see what I was doing wrong naturally. I got a guy on first, tried to steal second, and… yep, tagged out. I was just jamming on the buttons and hoping for the best. That clearly wasn’t working.
Figuring Out the Controls
So, I paused the game and went into the settings, then looked for controls, then baserunning controls. This part was a little tricky, but I scrolled around with the controller. I saw that the right stick was going to be my best friend here. That’s what I was going to use.
Next, I needed to find the timing.
- I learned you gotta start your slide input before your player gets too close to the base.
- Too early, and you slow down too much.
- Too late, and, well, you get tagged.
I spent a good amount of time in batting practice, just getting runners on and practicing stealing second. Just trying to figure out that sweet spot. I pushed the right stick in all kinds of directions.
Practice
I messed it up, A LOT. Headfirst slides when I wanted to go feet first, feet first when I needed to hook slide around a tag. It was a mess. But, slowly, I started to get a feel for it.
Moving the right stick down is going to be a feet-first slide.
Moving the right stick up is going to be a head-first slide.
I started to see how holding the stick slightly to the left or right would change the slide, letting me aim for a specific side of the base. That’s where the real skill comes in, avoiding those tags.
Finally, I jumped back into a real game. And… I actually stole second! Cleanly! It felt amazing. I still mess up sometimes, but now I at least know what I’m supposed to be doing, and I can practice to get better. I keep practicing, and my baserunning gets more and more dangerous. That’s the key.
