- Primary Subject: MLB Video Games & Global Brand Growth (2026 Season)
- Key Update: Com2uS Director Rich Grisham details how mobile accessibility and "learning by doing" are expanding MLB's reach in Europe, Latin America, and the APAC region.
- Status: Confirmed (Interview)
- Last Verified: May 14, 2026
- Quick Answer: Baseball video games act as a primary entry point for international fans, using free-to-play mobile accessibility to teach complex rules and maintain 24/7 engagement worldwide.
In a time when many sports video games are seeing a decline in popularity and reach, baseball, especiallty MLB related games, are defying that gaming slump.
Baseball video games have grown significantly in the past few years, and that growth happened simultaneously with baseball's increased worldwide popularity.
Players are engaging with baseball games more than ever, and that has impacted the growth of America's game on a worldwide scale.
Fans use them to understand the new rules, to learn about what being a GM entails, to get a glimpse of how stars would perform in new teams, and much more.
Com2uS is the developer of some of the biggest games in the baseball space, such as MLB 9 Innings, MLB Perfect Inning, and their crown jewel, Out of the Park Baseball.
To really understand the amazing growth of baseball video games in the past few years, and how they are tied to the surge in popularity of the sport, I talked with Com2uS director Rich Grisham.
Without further ado, let's get into the interview.
What is the main driver of baseball's global surge? And what role do video games play in it?
Rich Grisham: I don’t think you can pin it on one thing, because to me it’s a clear mixture of several compelling forces.
First of all, MLB has done a great job making the gameday experience excellent, with the new pace-of-play rules as well as the new ABS Challenge. Fans are engaged because the game moves along at a great cadence and things are always happening.
Secondly, you have these larger-than-life players like Ohtani and Judge who are almost like superheroes in physical size and in-game accomplishments.
Thirdly, MLB has set the standard for allowing fans of all types to watch games in so many different ways, whether it’s through the MLB.TV service, regular television, streaming, or direct apps with clubs.
I think more people are watching MLB baseball around the world than ever, and the video games that feature their favorite teams and players - especially free-to-play ones they can instantly access - are yet another variable feeding into MLB’s impressive growth.
What would you attribute this year-over-year growth that baseball has been experiencing?
Rich Grisham: In addition to what I listed above (pace of play improvements, larger-than-life superstars, watching games anywhere you are), I also think that the recent World Baseball Classic had a massive impact in energizing baseball fans globally.
There are so many great players from so many parts of the world - the USA, Venezuela, Japan, Mexico, Korea, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and so many other nations - that more eyeballs are on screens for baseball than we’ve ever seen before.
How has the professionalization of leagues outside the 'Big Three' (USA, Japan, Korea) helped grow the popularity of the sport?
Rich Grisham: It definitely has an impact, because we can see a direct correlation between growth in areas like Taiwan, Germany, and the UK, where newer professional leagues have been established, which raises the overall profile of the sport
Baseball has seen a massive popularity surge in Europe and Latin America. Have baseball video games experienced the same?
Rich Grisham: The short answer is yes, as our baseball titles have experienced material growth in those regions as well. Even better, there remains a lot of room to keep adding fans in those areas, and we are confident that we will continue to grow in those areas.
Baseball has also seen a meteoric rise in the APAC region. What do you think contributed the most to it? Do you think mobile games have played a part in it?
Rich Grisham: The arrival of some of the greatest players from Japan and Korea - Ohtani, Yamamoto, Suzuki, JH Lee, and Ha-Seong Kim, to name a few - has changed the game for everyone.
These players don’t just compete here; they win team championships and individual trophies. They represent their countries incredibly well and set a new standard for all players.
As mobile-first societies, video games definitely allow these fans to enjoy their favorite players in additional ways.
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Mobile titles like MLB 9 Innings and MLB Perfect Inning have massive player bases. To what extent is mobile gaming acting as the primary 'entry point' for new international fans?
Rich Grisham: There has been a significant shift in how mobile gaming has attracted new international players as a primary entry point.
It’s pretty clear that the cost of entry is lowest at mobile, with devices being omnipresent and the games being free to play, so when you combine that with the surge in popularity of Major League Baseball over the past few years, that is a great recipe for growth.
Would you say that games such as MLB Perfect Inning explain the complex rules of baseball in an easier way to new fans than a TV broadcast does? And if so, why?
Rich Grisham: I wouldn’t say easier, but I would say it’s a more customized approach because you have instant context to whatever is happening on the field.
Baseball is an idiosyncratic sport with respect to its rules and history, and “learning by doing” is certainly one way to make it easier to understand why certain rules exist and how they pertain to you and your team.
Do you think baseball games, mainly OOTP, help educate fans about the new rules and the sport in general? If so, what are the benefits of this for the real sport?
Rich Grisham: Definitely, and it’s a two-way street. We work with clubs and the community to ensure the latest rules and regulations are in place, because those really differentiate eras from each other.
The more people that you can reach, the better, and video games are a great tool for reach!
In what ways do video games contribute to the recent popularity growth of the sport, especially outside of the US?
Rich Grisham: As I said, as many nations have become mobile- and digital-first, video games offer an avenue to explore the sport that offers unique advantages.
For example, you can play a game anytime, but you can’t always watch your favorite MLB team play (especially if you’re on the other side of the world!).
Maintaining a connection with your team, even when you can’t watch them play, is a unique feature of video games that offers a lot of upside.
How crucial is the 'virtual diamond' in places such as Europe and Latin America, where most people don’t have access to baseball fields?
Rich Grisham: It definitely makes it possible! I think it’s similar to golf and ice hockey - those are sports that are really, really hard to experience in real life in those parts of the world, but a virtual experience puts it right in front of you in a way you’ve never been able to try. It can be very powerful!
How important is the continued growth of the baseball video game genre for the actual sport?
Rich Grisham: You always want to see growth if possible, but everyone understands that video games, like sports, go in cycles. These days, we are definitely in a growth phase, both for the sport and the baseball game space.
To me, it’s less about the revenues and more about the demographics - people who play baseball video games tend to be younger and quite dedicated to their favorite teams and players. Those are the kinds of people who make things happen.
Would you say the virtual game is bringing people who have never played baseball in their lives to the real sport?
Rich Grisham: Without a doubt, and it's also turning casual fans into hardcore ones!
What are the main reasons that captivate these players to become real-life fans?
Rich Grisham: Is there anything more satisfying than swinging a bat and hitting a home run? It sounds silly, but a few things in life feel better than something like that.
Most people never really get to do something like that - especially at a Major League level - and this lets that happen anytime you want.
We’ve seen strategic partnerships between MLB and developers like Konami and Com2uS. How vital are these 'virtual ballparks' to MLB’s goal of becoming a 24/7 global entertainment brand?
Rich Grisham: Your best chance to succeed is for the most people to be able to see you, so delivering an authentic, fun MLB experience on mobile devices is a very clear path to achieving that goal.
The challenge is cutting through all of the noise out there; it can be very difficult to reach players directly.
If your game is great, though, it begins to generate the kind of word-of-mouth-inspired growth that digital advertising struggles to achieve these days.
Is the ability that video games have of reaching a demography that would otherwise not engage with baseball content one of the main ways they help grow the sport?
Rich Grisham: The short answer is yes. As technology continues to fracture people into different groups - such as fully digital young people who don’t have televisions and use the internet for everything, to “traditional” older people who prefer “old school” televisions and video game consoles - it also creates very specific cohorts that can be served equally well in very different ways.
How can video games turn a percentage of that new demography into actual fans of the sport?
Rich Grisham: The sport itself is the ultimate determining factor - if you don’t like watching or playing real baseball, it’s unlikely that you would like the video game version - but games can absolutely serve as an introduction to the game.
It’s a lot easier to hit a virtual 100-MPH fastball than a real one, and what may be impossible to accomplish on a real-life baseball diamond is eminently possible in a video game.
What can video games do going forward to continue to help the real sport grow?
Rich Grisham: The most important thing is to make it easy to jump in and play - which sounds simple, but onboarding new players is a complicated process and is definitely not a “blueprint”.
So many people behave in so many different ways, and want different things from their experiences, that there is not a one-size-fits-all way to do that. It’s an always-evolving process, and we constantly iterate on it.
Closing Remarks
That was our interview with Com2uS director Rich Grisham, whom I want to thank for taking the time to do this interview.
It definitely shed light on the growth of the baseball video game space, how that impacts the real sport, and what we can expect in the future, from both Com2uS titles and other players in the space.
I hope you enjoyed the interview and that it answered all the questions you had.
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