The Wonderful World of Backyard Baseball
Before their lives were dominated by video games, kids such as myself used to keep entertained by firing up their computers, throwing in a CD, and playing computer games for hours on end. One of the first computer games I ever played was Backyard Baseball 2001, a now legendary creation that saw the debut of professional baseball players in the Backyard Universe. If you have played, you know how great this game really is, but in case you haven’t, here is some info to give you the leg up on the competition.
Around the Game
Best Team: When selecting what team to play as in Backyard Baseball, there is really only one choice, and that’s the Melonheads. Their purple threads really bring out the green of the mascot, a watermelon stepping up to the plate with its tongue sticking out. The New York Yankees of the Backyard universe, the Melonheads have made such an impact on the baseball world that the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders wore their uniforms a few seasons ago. Any chance you get to wear a badass looking Watermelon on your jersey, you have to jump at it.
Best Stadium: If you want the traditional baseball experience, I’d recommend picking the Playground Commons, which is your standard field with a playground off in the distance, and chain-link fenced in right. But my go-to choice is Steele Stadium, the backyard of our very own first baseman Ernie Steele. The smallest field in the game, its incredibly easy to hit home runs (which lets be honest, is the most fun part of the game) thanks to a short cut-out fence in center field, and a shed which counts out as a home run if hit. The biggest appeal of Steele Stadium may be the pool behind the left field fence, both for the opportunity to rip one into the water, but also to jump in following a win. Just be careful, it’s the neighbors!
Best Power-Up: Offensively, the easiest answer is the aluminum power bat, which all but guarantees a home run. Since that is essentially a cheat code, I’ll instead go with the Under Grounder, which allows the hitter to hit the ball underground, with no idea where it may pop up on the field for a low-risk, potentially high-reward power-up. On the pitching side, it really depends on what kind of game you want to play, finesse or dominance. If the former, go with the Freeze Ball, where the ball will literally freeze and trick the hitter into swinging, and if the latter, go with the Fire Ball and pump true heat right by the hitter.
Rosters
Now if you’re like me and played this game as a huge baseball nut, one of the huge appeals was getting to play as MLB players when they were kids. But, I know there are some traditionalists out there who only play the game with the original, computerized character. So with that in mind, here are my go-to rosters for both types of players.
MLB Roster (with 2000 stats)
Catcher, Mike Piazza: 5.1 WAR, 38 HR, 113 RBI, .328/.398/.614, 90 R, 156 H
First Base, Mark McGwire: 4.2 WAR, 32 HR, 72 RBI, .305/.483/746, 60 R, 72 H
Second Base, Derek Jeter: 4.6 WAR, 15 HR, 73 RBI, .339/.416/.481, 119 R, 201 H, 22 SB
Shortstop, Alex Rodriguez: 10.4 WAR, 41 HR, 132 RBI, .316/.420/.606, 134 R, 175 H,
Third Base, Chipper Jones: 5.7 WAR, 36 HR, 111 RBI, .311/.404/.566, 118 R, 180 H, 14 SB
Left Field, Barry Bonds: 7.7 WAR, 49 HR, 106 RBI, .306/.440/.688, 129 R, 147 H, 11 SB
Center Field, Ken Griffey Jr: 5.5 WAR, 40 HR, 118 RBI, .271/.387/.556, 100 R, 141 H
Right Field, Sammy Sosa: 5.7 WAR, 50 HR, 138 RBI, .320/.406/.634, 106 R, 193 H
Pitcher, Randy Johnson: 8.1 WAR, 19–7, 2.64 ERA, 347 K, 1.118 WHIP, 248.2 IP, 8 CG, 3 SHO
Backyard Sports Roster
Catcher, Achmed Khan: The rock and roller of baseball, Khan is the perfect choice at catcher since he is locked in to the music blasting through his headphones, which I imagined given the era was probably Creed’s “Higher” over and over again. Most importantly, he won’t be distracted behind the dish, which will allow Achmed to be completely focused in on giving the signs to the pitcher.
First Base, Ernie Steele: At the little league level, a tall first baseman is absolutely essential to give the infield the biggest target possible. And that’s why Ernie is manning first for our team, as the tallest and one of the slowest players in the game, he’s exactly what your prototypical first baseman should be like.
Second Base, Tony Delvecchio: When you think of second base, you think of the scrappy, gritty player who isn’t afraid to get dirty, and that’s exactly what Tony D is. With a lollipop substituting as a cigarette, swooped hair, and tank top, Tony would make any greaser proud, and looks like he would have no problem getting up after a hard take out slide, or even throwing hands if the slide airs on the side of cheap.
Shortstop, Pablo Sanchez: This needs no explanation. The shortstop is the de-facto captain of the team, and often of the team’s best players. God’s gift to the Backyard universe, Pablo is the best player at every position, but for this exercise, we’ll stick him at short, where he can lead the team and hold down the infield, where his speed will especially come in handy next to Mikey Thomas. The #3 hitter on the squad, he’s the only player in the game worth considering over a professional player.
Third Base, Mikey Thomas: Mikey is at third base for many of the reasons I played third base as a kid; he’s a slow kid with a strong bat and decent arm that you need to put in the field somewhere, so he ends up at third since there’s only so much ground you need to cover at the hot corner. One of the best hitters in the game, Mikey is our big bopper that will bat fourth right behind Sanchez, with the hope that Pablo will also be able to help mitigate his defensive shortcomings.
Left Field, Jocinda Smith: When I think of a corner outfielder, the two things I look for are a strong bat, and a strong arm, and Jocinda has both of these in spades. Nicknamed the “MVP”, her bio says she has the best swing in town, and her strong combination of fielding and hitting will be a major plus to the roster.
Center Field, Pete Wheeler: Speed kills, which is exactly why Pete Wheeler will be roaming center field, and bating leadoff for the squad. The fastest player in the game, Pete will be an excellent table-setter offensively, and while he isn’t the smartest tool in the shed, we’ll keep it simple and just tell him to run down any baseballs in his vicinity in the outfield.
Right Field, Dante Robinson: It can never hurt to have an abundance of speed in the outfield, which is exactly why Dante will be in right field. Between him and Pete, I don’t expect any balls in the gap on the right side, and with an afro for the ages and the fact that he’s still quick despite wolfing down a cheeseburger or hot dog before every at bat, Dante may be the biggest physical specimen on the entire roster.
Pitcher, Kenny Kawaguchi: While it may be a little unconventional to have a player in the wheel chair on the mound, it only adds to the deception that makes Kenny the highest ranked pitcher in the game. With a nasty curveball, the K-Man is the guy you want on the bump to lead your team to victory.
There you have it friends, my complete primer on Backyard Baseball 2001, which for my money, is still the best computer game of all-time. All that’s left to do now is fire up your PC, step up to the plate, and get playing!
