Bottom of the 9th

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Bottom of the 9th
System(s): Sega Saturn
Publisher: Konami
Developer: Konami
Licensor: Major League Baseball Players Association
Genre: Sports (baseball)
Number of players: 1-2
Release Date RRP Code US 1996-10-18 T-9505H
Non-Sega versions PlayStation

Bottom of the 9th is a baseball game for the Sega Saturn. It was developed by Konami and released as part of their "Konami XXL" line of sports games. It was only released in North America.

Gameplay

The game is a baseball simulation that uses texture-mapped 3D models for players and stadiums. It has an MLBPA license and includes the 700 players from the 1995 MLB season with their portraits and statistics, but it does not have an MLB license, so teams are only identified by locale and have fictional logos. There are eight selectable stadiums, which are also fictional but inspired by real-life stadiums. Pitching and batting are done through an aiming cursor that requires quick reflexes to aim accurately. There is an announcer who provides play-by-play commentary.

	Starting Lineup
	Before each game, players can pick the starting pitcher and set the batting order. A green "POW" gauge next to each player's name shows his vitality level. The color behind the player's name shows which positions he can play (red for pitcher, pink for relief pitcher, blue for catcher, yellow for infielder, green for outfielder, and half-yellow/half-green indicating a utility player who can play multiple positions). When choosing a position player, "Run" indicates how fast the player can run and "Arm" indicates how far the player can throw (as letter ratings from A for best to E for worst). When choosing a pitcher, "Speed" shows the fastest pitch that he can throw and a five-directional gauge shows the kinds of pitches that he can throw, with the fullness of the arrow indicating how much the pitch breaks. The left and right arrows are for sliders (the direction depends on the handedness of the pitcher), down-left is for curveballs, down is for forkballs or knuckleballs (depending on the pitcher), and down-right is for sinkers or screwballs (depending on the pitcher).
	Defense
	Pitching is done through a cursor interface. Before the wind-up, the player can choose the pitch to throw by pressing a direction on the D-Pad: Changeup: A slow pitch without any breaking. This pitch is thrown if the player does not press any direction. Fastball: A fastball without any breaking. This pitch is thrown if the player presses . Slider: A pitch that looks like a regular fastball but breaks sharply horizontally in the opposite direction of the pitcher's throwing arm. This pitch is thrown if the player presses for a right-handed pitcher or for a left-handed pitcher. Curveball: A pitch that breaks diagonally in the opposite direction of the pitcher's throwing arm. This pitch is thrown if the player presses . Fork: A pitch that looks like a regular fastball but breaks sharply downward. It is most effective when thrown low in the strike zone. This pitch is thrown if the player presses with a pitcher who can throw it. Knuckle: A slow pitch that takes an unusual flight path. It is most effective when thrown low in the strike zone. This pitch is thrown if the player presses with a pitcher who can throw it. Sinker: A pitch that breaks diagonally in the same direction of the pitcher's throwing arm. It is useful for inducing groundballs. This pitch is thrown if the player presses with a right-handed pitcher. Screwball: A pitch that breaks diagonally in the same direction of the pitcher's throwing arm. It is useful for inducing groundballs. This pitch is thrown if the player presses with a left-handed pitcher. The type of pitch determines how the ball will break. The player's selection is not indicated on-screen to keep it a secret from the other player (in two-player games). The pitcher shakes his head if the player chooses a pitch that the pitcher cannot throw. When throwing with a new pitcher (at the beginning of the first inning for a starter or after calling a relief), the player is given the opportunity to "warm-up" the pitcher and throw some practice pitches to learn the pitches that the pitcher can throw. The pitcher throws the pitch by pressing . During the wind-up, the player can aim the pitch by moving the D-Pad, which moves the catcher's mitt, visible in an inset at the top of the screen. An indicator in the bottom-left corner shows the wind speed and direction. Once the pitch is thrown, the location can no longer be changed, and the cross-shaped pitching cursor appears where the pitch will arrive. The pitcher can throw the ball to first base by pressing , second base by pressing , or third base by pressing in order to pick-off runners who are trying to steal a base. The player can adjust the positions of defenders by pressing while pitching. This cycles between the standard positions, "DEF.IN" to bring the fielders in (better for fielding ground balls), "DEF.OUT" to pull the fielders out (better for fielding long hits), or "CORNERS IN" to bring the first and third basemen in (in preparation for a bunt). When the ball is in play, the player automatically controls the fielder who is closest to the ball (who is marked with a triangle above his head), and the computer controls the other fielders. Outfielders who are out of view are shown as arrows on the screen edge (L for left fielder, C for center fielder, and R for right fielder), and runners are shown on a miniature diamond in the bottom-right corner. When there are multiple fielders chasing the ball, the player can cycle between them by pressing and . The active fielder can be moved in any direction using the D-Pad. The fielder can jump to catch a ball by pressing , , , or or make a diving catch by holding a direction on the D-Pad while pressing , , , or . Once the ball is caught, the fielder can throw the ball to first base by pressing , second base by pressing , third base by pressing , or home plate by pressing or throw the ball to the cutoff man (from outfield) by pressing or . A green "POW" gauge next to a player's name shows his vitality level. Tired pitchers are more likely to throw wild pitches, and tired fielders are more likely to make errors. The player can call time by pressing  START  (in between pitches), which can be used to call a relief pitcher or substitute a fielder.
	Offense
	Batting is done through a cursor interface. The strike zone is shown before the pitcher winds up. The batting cursor, an X surrounded by a rectangle, appears inside the strike zone and shows the batter's contact zone. The size of the rectangle depends on the batter's batting average. The batting cursor can be moved within the area of the strike zone using the D-Pad or moved back to the default position (in the center) by pressing . When the pitch is thrown, the cross-shaped pitching cursor appears where the pitch will arrive. The player should move the batting cursor to intercept the pitch before it arrives, then press to swing at it or hold to bunt. If the ball arrives within the batting cursor, the bat makes contact. If the the batting cursor intersects with the pitching cursor, the ball hits the "sweet spot" of the bat, resulting in the most powerful and accurate hit. Hitting the ball below the pitching cursor results in a pop-up; hitting the ball above the pitching cursor results in a grounder. Hitting to the left or right pulls the ball in the same direction. The timing of the swing also affects how the ball will travel. The player can switch between two swing types, contact (the default) and power, by pressing . The rectangle around the batting cursor is smaller when using a power swing, which makes it more difficult to make contact, but the ball is flies faster and further if it is hit. The player can call for a hit-and-run (baserunners start running when pitcher starts his pitch rather than waiting for the ball to be hit) by pressing while batting. A baserunner can steal a base by holding a direction corresponding to the base to steal ( for first, for second, for third, or for home) and pressing , or all runners can be ordered to advance a base by pressing . If done while batting, the runner waits until the pitch is thrown to avoid being picked off. A baserunner can be ordered back to base by holding a direction corresponding to the base to previous base and pressing , or all runners can be ordered to retreat to the previous base by pressing . Runners can be made to run faster by pressing and alternately and repeatedly. All runners can be ordered to stop by pressing + or +. While batting, insets at the top corners show who is on first and third base (and second base is visible behind the pitcher). An indicator in the bottom-left corner shows the wind speed and direction. The inset in the middle shows the catcher, which can be used to predict the pitch by looking at the position of the catcher's mitt. When running, a miniature diamond in the bottom-right corner shows the positions of runners as dots. A green "POW" gauge next to a player's name shows his vitality level. The player can call time by pressing  START  (in between pitches), which can be used to call a pinch hitter or a pinch runner or to change the stance of a switch hitter (by pressing or ).

Modes

Training camp

Season mode

The game has the following modes:

• 1P vs COM: An exhibition game between a human player and a computer team. The player can choose any two teams (which may be the same team).
• 1P vs 2P: An exhibition game between two human players. Players can choose any two teams (which may be the same team).
• Spectator: An exhibition game between two computer teams. The player can choose any two teams (which may be the same team).
• Training Camp: A training mode where the player can practice batting, running, offense (both batting and running), pitching, fielding, or defense (both pitching and fielding). There is no changing sides in this mode, so play continues until the player presses  START  to return to the menu.
• Season Mode: A season mode where the player chooses a league and plays a season of 13, 26, 52, or 162 games (per team, so the actual number of scheduled games is greater). The player can set any team in the chosen league to manual or computer control (or no teams to have the computer play the entire season). When a game comes up on the schedule, it is played as a one-player game if one player-controlled team is involved or a two-player game if two player-controlled teams are involved. If both teams are computer-controlled, the player can choose to watch the computer play the game or skip it and only get the results. Progress is saved to the Saturn's internal memory so the season can be continued later.
• Statistics: Views statistics for players and teams in the season mode. Requires a saved game.
• General Manager: A team editor that allows the player to change team rosters by trading players. Fielders can only be traded for fielders, and pitchers can only be traded for pitchers. Modifications can be saved to the Saturn's internal memory for use in the other modes. In the season mode, trades must be made before starting a season.

Before an exhibition game, the player can choose which team is home or away, toggle designated hitter (which is on by default when an Apollo League team is playing or off by default when both teams are Neptune League), choose a stadium, choose the computer difficulty level (Minor, Rookie, Veteran, or All Star), choose the number of innings (between 1 and 9), set the "slaughter" rule (ends the game early if the other team is ahead by 1 to 10 runs at the end of an inning if enabled), toggle wind, and toggle errors.

For every mode, running, fielding, batting, pitching, manager (making substitutions), and cursor (aiming the batting cursor) can be set to manual or auto for each player in the options. When set to manual, the computer handles that aspect of the game automatically.

Stadiums

The game has the following stadiums, which are fictional but inspired by real venues:

• Deerfield Yard
• Greenway Park
• Waterfront Stadium
• Panther Field
• Titan Stadium
• The Ballpark at Amarillo
• Cometdome
• Monsterdome

The wind setting has no effect in the two dome stadiums.

Teams

Team select

Because the game lacks an MLB license, teams are identified only by locale and have fictional logos. They are organized into the "Apollo" and "Neptune" leagues, modeled after the American League and National League respectively. In addition to these teams, players can select the Apollo League All-Stars or the Neptune League All-Stars.

When selecting a team, pressing when a team on the left edge is selected or pressing when a team on the right edge is selected changes the league.

League	Team	Based on
Apollo	Chicago A	Chicago White Sox
	Cleveland	Cleveland Indians
	Kansas	Kansas City Royals
	Minnesota	Minnesota Twins
	Milwaukee	Milwaukee Brewers
	Baltimore	Baltimore Orioles
	Boston	Boston Red Sox
	Detroit	Detroit Tigers
	New York A	New York Yankees
	Toronto	Toronto Blue Jays
	California	California Angels
	Oakland	Oakland Athletics
	Seattle	Seattle Mariners
	Texas	Texas Rangers
Neptune	Chicago N	Chicago Cubs
	Cincinnati	Cincinnati Reds
	Houston	Houston Astros
	Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh Pirates
	St. Louis	St. Louis Cardinals
	Atlanta	Atlanta Braves
	Florida	Florida Marlins
	Montreal	Montreal Expos
	New York N	New York Mets
	Philadelphia	Philadelphia Phillies
	Colorado	Colorado Rockies
	Los Angeles	Los Angeles Dodgers
	San Diego	San Diego Padres
	San Francisco	San Francisco Giants

Magazine articles

Main article: Bottom of the 9th/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

PDF

Print advert in Next Generation (US) #22: "October 1996" (1996-09-17)
also published in:

• Game Informer (US) #42: "October 1996" (1996-xx-xx)
• Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) #87: "October 1996" (1996-xx-xx)

Physical scans

Sega Retro Average
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Bottom of the 9th

Saturn, US
Box
Disc Manual

Technical information

Main article: Bottom of the 9th/Technical information.