The control is simple enough, but occasionally you'll battle annoying CPU quirks. You assume that you'll be controlling the first basemen, start running to the left, but instead the CPU decided you should control the second baseman and you're now running away from the ball. The pitching is equally easy to pick up, though I've always found 989's MLB system more intuitive. Also, it seems like there are a few pitches that guarantee success, while the rest are dubious. There is definitely a formula behind AI pitching and batting, and it's not complicated.
Batting is easy and pretty fun.
You can bear down and try to hit a homer or go for the frozen rope into that right field hole. The sound of the crack of the bat as you let loose on a foolishly thrown fastball compounds your enjoyment to the point that you almost wanna go out and play real baseball. Speaking of sounds, TP is pretty decent as long as you dismantle the announcers. I understand the desire to make sports games as realistic as possible, but the stupid announcers with their bobbles, wrong calls, and improper inflections destroy any realistic pretext and seem genuinely fabricated. There really aren't any new modes, just new names for old ones.