MLB The Show 25: 5th Inning Program Bosses and Breakdown

The 5th Inning Program is here a day early due to the July 4th holiday, and features a Braves-themed set of Bosses. We also get another round of Cornerstone Evolution cards, a free 96 overall Emmanuel Clase, and more!

Cornerstone Evolution

The 5th Inning Cornerstone Evolution players are Matt Chapman, Alex Gordon, and Juan Marichal. SDS again simplified the grind a bit by adding PXP and stat-based missions for the lower-rated versions of each player, meaning you can slot them into your DD lineup and grind with them instead of doing Moments. We've seen more and more subtle tweaks that really promote player variety in program completion, which will always be a huge win.

Chapman and Gordon are defensive juggernauts that hold their own offensively, while Juan Marichal is a finesse pitcher's delight with his quirky windup, junky pitch mix, and devilish speed differentials.

XP Path Reward Emmanuel Clase

The "henchman" of the 5th Inning Bosses is 96 overall Emmanuel Clase. Clase is a reward within the 5th Inning XP Path itself, earned upon reaching 135,000 XP. Clase has otherworldly stuff and, when on-point, one of the best relievers in Major League Baseball. However, that success has often not translated to Diamond Dynasty due to gameplay dynamics.

That might change with this version of Clase.

This Clase features a Sinker instead of a 4-Seamer, which makes a huge difference in how this card will play. We know Sinkers are deadly, especially when the feature elite velocity and break, but this also gives Clase a pitch with different depth. The 4-Seamer, Cutter, Slider combo can make Clase easy picking for good hitters. With a Sinker, Clase might see more consistent play if it translates to in-game performance as suspected.

4th Inning Voucher and Exchanges

Every Inning Program presents a chance to collect the previous Inning Bosses for a boost in the new path. That's still true in the 5th Inning, except collecting Hank Greenberg, Derek Jeter, and Nolan Ryan rewards 50,000 XP instead of the usual 30,000 XP boost.

Additionally, there's a handful of exchanges that have been added to the 5th Inning Program. You can earn a total of 50,000 XP just for exchanging cards from your binder, presenting a decent chance to get some extra value for cards that have been rotting in your binder. If you collect the 4th Inning Bosses and do all of these exchanges, you'll have earned 100,000 XP in the 5th Inning Program without throwing a single pitch.

Head over to the exchanges page here at ShowZone to see how you can maximize exchanges to boost your progress in the 5th Inning.

5th Inning Bosses

The 5th Inning is Atlanta Braves-themed, as the All-Star Game returns to Atlanta, Georgia this year. All three Bosses are 97 overall Braves in the All-Star card series, which will also be a big boon for anyone still working on the All-Star series collection for Scott Rolen and/or Ted Williams.

All-Star RF Hank Aaron - #5 RF True Overall

Hammerin' Hank returns with this well balanced All-Star version. No, this card doesn't feature max Power like we might want from a Hank Aaron card, but Aaron is one of the best overall hitters in MLB history. Getting Contact/Clutch splits of 100/103/125 with 90+ Power against both sides is a strong showing. I love Hank's swing, and Dead Red and Breaking Ball Hitter Quirks work together to make All-Star Hank Aaron #6 in Meta Overall as well.

This version of Aaron is landlocked to RF unless you're DHing, and the 70 Fielding and 68 Reaction is a bit rough. However, 76 Speed should help Aaron do a respectable job in the outfield. You'll also get 80 Stealing with this version, perhaps a rare glimpse at a side of Aaron's game we don't typically see.

All-Star SP Greg Maddux - #2 SP True Overall

The Professor joins the Boss Pack as the #2 SP according to True Overall. Maddux obviously doesn't feature the overpowering stuff that many seek in starting pitchers within Diamond Dynasty, but the elite Control and Break is what made him a Hall of Famer.

With 100 H/9, 101 BB/9, and 117 Clutch; Maddux can hold his own in any situation with immaculate Control. Maddux's "worst" pitch is his Curveball that features 88 Control and 81 Break, yet that's still going to be a usable and viable pitch. Maddux will sit in the low 90's with his Sinker and Cutter, but the changing speeds between the Circle Change, Slider, and Curveball will be key in keeping hitters off-balance.

All-Star 3B Chipper Jones - #2 3B True Overall

The final Braves legend in the choice pack, Chipper Jones gets a much better version this time around. His earlier release was a Ranked reward with dreadful 67 Clutch, but this All-Star version makes up for that. With 101/106/81/105/104 Splits, Chipper looks a bit more Chipper-like with a well-rounded offensive profile. With his switch-hitting and Quirks, All-Star Chipper actually ranks as the #1 3B in Meta Overall upon release.

As an aside, this version of Chipper also features strong Fielding with 82 Fielding and 78 Reaction. Chipper's defense is usually on the shakier side, but this is a strong representation at the hot corner to go with the strong offensive attributes.

Summary

The Braves-themed 5th Inning features a couple ways to boost up to 100,000 XP before throwing a single pitch. Along the way at 135,000 XP, a free Awards Emmanuel Clase is waiting with a brand new Sinker to try out.

The first Boss pack is reached at 205,000 XP, meaning the boosts get you roughly halfway to the first Boss pack fairly easily. The final Boss pack is available at 400,000 XP with a Prime Choice Pack completing the Inning Program at 440,000 XP. Beyond that, you'll have a chance at the usual wheel spins.

Who are you taking first? Let us know in the comments!