The latest program has dropped in Diamond Dynasty and brings tons of personality with it.

The new Charisma Series Program features 10 new Charisma Series cards and a bevy of other rewards. Notably, these 10 Charisma Series cards are no-sell which means you can’t flip them on the market. However, they’re all Set 1 cards which will give a healthy boost to those chasing the Set 1 collections. As usual with this style of program – the cards are completely free with a little bit of grinding.

Charisma Series Program

There’s a really cool group of players featured in this program, some of whom don’t typically get 90+ overall cards in MLB The Show. Not all of these cards are meta darlings (so we won’t go super deep on them all) but they’re fun additions to the binder on top of the aforementioned ammunition toward completing Set 1 collections.

Let’s quickly highlight some of the lower-rated cards in the program. For a complete look at the card’s attributes, Quirks and True Overall/Meta Overall rankings, click the links below!

RF Brett Phillips (Tampa Bay Rays)

RP Joe Kelly (Los Angeles Dodgers)

RP Andrew Chafin (Detroit Tigers)

1B Josh Naylor (Cleveland Guardians)

3B Josh Harrison (Pittsburgh Pirates)

DH Daniel Vogelbach (New York Mets)

SS Oneil Cruz (Pittsburgh Pirates)

Next, we’ll take a closer look at the final 3 cards you earn within the program.

2B Ozzie Albies (Atlanta Braves)

Joining his pal Ronald Acuna Jr., Ozzie Albies gets himself his first high-diamond of the year with his own Charisma Series card. Ozzie is the definition of “average” with this card release. With no true standout attributes, Albies has solid attributes across the board that can supplement just about any team build. The offensive profile is balanced with the only elite attribute being Con L. The Power numbers on this card are pretty decent for a 2B, especially early in the year, which will play up a bit as Ozzie Albies has typically come with a pretty sweet swing. Ozzie shines with runners in scoring position as his Clutch rating comes in at 108, which gives him 108/108/92/87 splits in critical scoring situations. Those numbers will always play, especially when supported by the 78 stock Speed rating. Certainly no overwhelming offensive force, but the switch-hitting capability at least gives Ozzie some unique flair.

Defensively, Ozzie will become a Diamond fielder at Parallel 3 although he has an incredibly weak arm. That 63 Arm rating makes him a tough sell for SS, so keeping him at his natural 2B is the most sound move. Disappointingly, Charisma Series Albies doesn’t come with any Quirks to help him stand out. This Ozzie Albies currently ranks in at 10th overall in both True Overall and Meta Overall. The Braves fan in me wants to start him, but even I will have a tough time benching Charisma Jeff McNeil at the keystone.

2B Marcus Semien (Texas Rangers)

We get another solid 2B in this program with Marcus Semien. Semien is a 97 overall, only 1 overall better than Albies, but possess more pop, stronger Fielding and higher Speed.

Semien rates out pretty strong against Albies, although the 77 Clutch rating makes Semien more of a liability when runners are in scoring position. We’ll talk about Clutch every time we discuss attributes, but it remains to be seen if this ends up being a big deal in the long run. The shrinking PCI size will always matter but ultimately it might not be the biggest separator between these two 2B from the program.

Semien can play 3B and SS as well, although he also lacks a strong arm with the 64 Arm rating. Honestly, he profiles as a perfectly fine 2B that will hit for extra bases with his combination of Power and Speed.

Charisma Semien debuts at 7th in True Overall and 6th in Meta Overall. If you care about pure attributes, Semien is probably the better choice over Albies unless you prefer the switch-hitting that Ozzie can provide.

SP Luis Castillo (Seattle Mariners)

Last but certainly not least, the final reward in the program is SP Luis Castillo. Castillo typically offers a strong option for the rotation with his vicious combination of power Fastball and disgusting Circle Change. Castillo rounds out his pitch-mix with a Sinker and Slider that make him a perfectly viable SP at pretty much any point in the Diamond Dynasty cycle.

Castillo comes with 99 H/9 and 93 BB/9, which are plenty competitive. The 101 Clutch rating gives him a bit of a boost in scoring situations, which will make the Circle Change and Sinker even more valuable to prevent your opponent from scoring.

While Castillo isn’t necessarily the best SP option, the fact that he’s a free card with a disgusting repertoire should help him find his way into plenty of rotations. I know I always enjoy pitching with Castillo so he’ll eventually get a look from me.

Completing the Program

Missions

There’s a total of ten missions to complete in order to earn program stars. You’ll earn 4 program stars by grinding out a total of 5,000 PXP with any Charisma Series players. You’ll then earn an additional 4 program stars with all the earnable cards in the program from Brett Phillips up to Marcus Semien. An important note is that the pitchers require 600 PXP while hitters only require 200 PXP.

Moments

There’s also ten Moments featuring the Charisma Series cards from the program. Each Moment is worth 3 program stars which will net you a total of 30 stars for completing them all.

Showdown

The program also features a Showdown against Luis Castillo. Make your way through the gauntlet and defeat Castillo and you’ll earn 30 program stars.

Order of Operations

I highly suggest starting with the Moments. Completing them all gets you to 30 program stars and unlocks Brett Phillips, Joe Kelly and Andrew Chafin. That gives you three cards to start grinding PXP with.

Before grinding, however, I suggest completing the Showdown as you’ll earn another 30 program stars. That unlocks Josh Naylor, Josh Harrison, Daniel Vogelbach and Oneil Cruz.

That gives you more than enough cards to start a true PXP grind. The most efficient grinding is still probably Mini Seasons as you’ll earn progress toward the championship bundle. As you grind away, you’ll eventually earn Albies and Semien to help you complete the program.

It’s important to note that you have to complete everything listed above. The program caps out at 100 stars and you’ll earn exactly 100 between the Moments, Missions and Showdown.

Rewards

5 program stars – Show pack