MLB The Show 21 continues to bring new content to Diamond Dynasty to keep the game fresh, and the next big thing is the June Monthly Awards Program.
We've got all the details on when it went live in MLB The Show 21, this month's Diamond winners, and more.
June Monthly Awards Program goes live for MLB The Show 21
With another month of MLB play in the books, we're finally getting the June Monthly Awards Program in MLB The Show 21.
Each program of this kind chooses several standouts from the past month that receive a new card in the Monthly Awards series, as well as a single player who tops the list as the lone Lightning card.
The full program was expected to go live on July 7 at Noon PT (2pm CT/3pm ET), but some sudden technical difficulties prevented things from being released in MLB The Show 21.
After a few hours of waiting for word from Sony San Diego, they finally dropped details about most of the June Monthly Awards winners while leaving out the Lightning player.
The following players were chosen as June Monthly Awards winners:
- Tyler Stephenson, 92 OVR, Catcher, Cincinnati Reds
- Charlie Morton, 93 OVR, Starting Pitcher, Atlanta Braves
- Tyler Glasnow, 94 OVR, Starting Pitcher, Tampa Bay Rays
- Tommy Pham, 94 OVR, Left Fielder, San Diego Padres
- Ryan Pressly, 95 OVR, Closing Pitcher, Houston Astros
- Bryan Reynolds, 95 OVR, Center Fielder, Pittsburgh Pirates
- Jonathan Schoop, 95 OVR, First Baseman, Detroit Tigers
- Carlos Correa, 96 OVR, Shortstop, Houston Astros
Fortunately, the program finally went live approximately an hour later, and we now know who the endgame Lightning player reward will be.
Kyle Schwarber chosen as June's Lightning player
Kyle Schwarber has been absolutely on fire with the Washington Nationals in the last several weeks, and this card shows that perfectly.
Most Monthly Awards have a section on the card detailing why they were chosen and the particular statistic that shined in their month.
For Schwarber, that includes the mind-boggling fact that he's "one of only 3 players in MLB history with 15 home runs in a 17-game stretch."
Schwarber will be the most difficult reward to snag in this program, but we do have details on how to work your way through the program and unlock him.
If you can acquire him, Schwarber has got an astronomical 125 in Power vs. Right-Handed Pitchers and 110 in Contact vs. Right-Handed Pitchers, as well as a 100 in Power vs. Left-Handed Pitchers and 97 in Contact vs. Left-Handed Pitchers.
Tack on his 115 in Clutch, and Schwarber is an incredibly dangerous asset for any squad in Diamond Dynasty.
How to Unlock All June Monthly Awards Players
In order to complete the June Monthly Awards Program and snag Lightning Kyle Schwarber, you'll have to work your way through a series of tasks and challenges.
Most importantly, part of that will include completing the Topps Now Collection built into this program, which requires a full 28 out of 28 Topps Now players, so be careful not to sell them if you want to complete this program.
You'll acquire them both through the completion of this program and through Topps Now Moments for the month of June, and this program's tasks are built in a way that you may be able to skip a few Moments or Missions, but the Collection is required.
All Program Rewards
In addition to the Monthly Awards players themselves, you'll also earn some other Packs, Stubs, and Equipment along the way.
Here's the full reward track for the June Monthly Awards Program:
- 5 Points: Monthly Awards Tyler Stephenson
- 10 Points: Topps Now Choice Pack
- 15 Points: 1000 Stubs
- 20 Points: Monthly Awards Charlie Morton
- 25 Points: MLB Pro Prime KS12 Firefighter Bat Skin
- 30 Points: Monthly Awards Tyler Glasnow
- 35 Points: Topps Now Choice Pack
- 40 Points: Monthly Awards Tommy Pham
- 45 Points: 2000 Stubs
- 50 Points: Monthly Awards Ryan Pressly
- 55 Points: Topps Now Choice Pack
- 60 Points: Monthly Awards Bryan Reynolds
- 65 Points: Topps Now Choice Pack
- 70 Points: Monthly Awards Jonathan Schoop
- 75 Points: 3000 Stubs
- 80 Points: Monthly Awards Carlos Correa
- 85 Points: Ballin' is a Habit Pack
- 90 Points: 42 Series Legends Diamond Choice Pack
- 95 Points: Green Lightning Bat Skin
- 100 Points: Lightning Monthly Awards Kyle Schwarber
If you're unsure whether the program is worthwhile for you, take a look at each player compared to your lineup and see whether they'd actually improve it.
Moments & Missions
In order to work your way through the program and earn Points, you'll have to spend the majority of your time working through various Missions and Moments.
Moments are especially crafted scenarios with very specific requirements, whereas Missions are more general and completed by playing in other game modes like Conquest or Ranked Seasons.
The following Missions are available:
- Extra Base Hits with Topps Now: Tally 7 Extra Base Hits with Players from the Topps Now Series in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 10 Points)
- Strikeouts with Topps Now: Tally 15 Strikeouts with Players from the Topps Now Series in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 10 Points)
- Total Bases with Topps Now: Tally 30 Total Bases with Players from the Topps Now Series in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 10 Points)
- Extra Base Hits with Stephenson: Tally 3 Extra Base Hits with Monthly Awards Tyler Stephenson in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 4 Points)
- Strikeouts with Morton: Strike Out 9 Batters with Monthly Awards Charlie Morton in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 4 Points)
- Strikeouts with Glasnow: Strike Out 9 Batters with Monthly Awards Tyler Glasnow in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 4 Points)
- Extra Base Hits with Pham: Tally 3 Extra Base Hits with Monthly Awards Tommy Pham in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 4 Points)
- Strikeouts with Pressly: Strike Out 5 Batters with Monthly Awards Ryan Pressly in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 4 Points)
- Total Bases with Reynolds: Tally 10 Total Bases with Monthly Awards Bryan Reynolds in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 4 Points)
- HR with Schoop: Hit 2 Home Runs with Monthly Awards Jonathan Schoop in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 4 Points)
- Total Bases with Correa: Tally 10 Total Bases with Monthly Awards Carlos Correa in Ranked Seasons, Battle Royale, Events, Play vs CPU, Extra Innings, or Conquest (Rewards 4 Points)
You can find details on Moments in the program and play them from the tasks section or by going directly into the Moments game mode, the latter of which may be easiest.
Doing your Moments through that interface rather than the program can make it easier to jump between programs and knock out the Moments you need to, and keep in mind that you won't have to do every Moment.
In fact, if you complete all of the Missions and the Collection, you'll be able to skip three of the Moments in this Program and still have the full 100 Points to unlock Kyle Schwarber in Diamond Dynasty.