But the knock against the Hardball games has always been the stats and managerial depth and it is in this area that Hardball 5 really steps up to the plate. In addition to the traditional ability ratings for every player, there are stats for everything imaginable. Fine, you can customize the stats displays to show you any stats you want including situational stats to evaluate how a player hits against lefties or how many homers he pounds in August or you can look up his accumulated stats from all the seasons he's played since you installed the game. Just to make sure there are plenty of stats to enjoy, Hardball 5 now offers you the chance to manage 40 man rosters, complete with disabled lists and a minor league system. Everything is there, and, boy, is it fun.
Stat analysis can tag an extra half hour onto a game easily.
Such a detailed compiling of statistics is a great addition to the Hardball line, but unfortunately the statistic model is suspect and that's a big detraction, especially if you're going to rely on the computer to simulate some games during the course of your season. The inadequacy of the stat model became evident after I ran a few simulated seasons, using Greg Maddux and Tony Gwynn as benchmarks for pitching and hitting respectively. Maddux didn't once finish in even the top 20 for ERA, posting a 3.90 ERA and going 12-11, well behind the ERA leader Hideo Nomo's 1.89. Another season Maddux compiled a 3.18 ERA, almost a full run behind Doug Drabek's league-leading 2.18. Add in the fact that Maddux's ERA last year was again under 2.00 and that his combined ERA for the last four years is barely over 2.00, and you can tell that the man who's won four consecutive Cy Young awards is not the one on the mound in Hardball 5.