A full redesign of MLB At Bat for '14 was introduced in February with the most notable changes supporting the new instant replay system. The revamped app delivers a quality, team-centric experience with a clean live-stream and excellent play-by-play features. At Bat '14 is a free download with paid access tiers. Non-paying users can view basic scores and schedules. A fee of $2.99 per month or $19.99 for the season unlocks premium features including live look-ins to certain games on MLB.TV. Premium MLB.TV subscribers ($24.99 per month or $114.99 for the season) can access all of the app’s features for free and view a complete package of out-of-market games live within the app. There is no advertising within At Bat '14. I conducted this review on an iPhone version 7.1.1, with AT&T service.
*Editor's Note: This review reflects the fully optimized regular season feature set of At Bat ’14 including content and coverage from all 30 MLB teams. A prior review of this product was conducted in October '13 during the World Series when many of the app’s features including live game streaming were not available due to broadcast restrictions. With far more content available in the regular season, this review depicts the full suite of At Bat product offerings
STARTING LINEUP: At Bat '14 has a team-specific layout containing all of the basic information a hometown fan might want to access. Schedules, scores, standings, statistics, game wraps, highlights and news can be found on the app’s main screen. Instagram, Facebook and Twitter accounts are also available. A top-level view of all MLB games by date can be viewed by tapping on the second navigation icon. During live games, the app offers premium At Bat subscribers access to live look-ins, home and away audio, gameday features and box scores. MLB.TV subscribers receive all that and more: all out-of-market live games from across the league, archived games and condensed recaps. Video recaps populate shortly after live games end. A library of classic games and other fun features like MLB Fan Cave and Social Clubhouse are also available in At Bat. Tickets and merchandise are integrated into the experience, and both can be purchased within the app.
NO HITTERS: Live game features and condensed game video are standouts in At Bat '14. In addition to watching pitch-by-pitch renderings of live play, users can read brief summaries of each at bat and view key highlights minutes after they happen in real time. Game summaries are split into scoring and play categories for quick accessibility, and for those who would rather watch than read, highlight videos are housed within their own searchable section. Condensed game recaps allow users to catch up on missed games in less than 20 minutes with no unnecessary noise or interruptions. For calls that are challenged using the new instant replay system, the app offers a full clip of the play in question along with a written summary of the reviewed call in the gameday play-by-play summary. The All-Star Game voting mechanism is also worth a mention, giving fans the ability to cast up to 35 ballots within the app.
BALKS: For MLB.TV premium subscribers who already have access to live video from across the league, live look-ins seem pointless. Yes, they might present an opportunity to see some action from a blacked-out game, but there is no description of what is happening or why a user might want to look in. Perhaps a clear call-out like NBA Game Time’s "excitement alert" feature would make this more compelling for premium subscribers. Otherwise, it should be active for only those who do not already have a subscription to MLB.TV. Classic games are broken into categories, but cannot be searched by team or year. This is a recommended addition for future versions. Two technical criticisms: First, the in-stream closed captioning text cannot be read because it appears beneath the league scoreboard. Second, playing audio and video simultaneously results in a sound error because neither feed shuts off.
BOTTOM LINE: At Bat '14 is an out-of-market baseball fan’s best friend. With the exception of watching their team play, in-market fans have access to an array of features within the app that complement the game broadcast. Gameday offerings -- notably the pitch tracker and highlight video feed -- are impressive. The addition of instant replay video on challenged calls is a nice bonus feature for fans. Only a few minor adjustments, like the relocation of the closed caption feed inside the live-stream, are needed to improve the experience.
Amie Sheridan (amie.sheridan31@gmail.com) is a freelance writer in Philadelphia.
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