I would consider myself a pretty devout baseball fan.  I mean my favorite team is the Florida Marlins.  Sure we won the World Series twice, but I have to suffer through years of heartache before another chance rolls around.  So in the meantime, I've been trying to entertain myself with a good baseball game for the Xbox 360.

I wish "MLB09: The Show" would make its way over to Xbox but that doesn't look likely.  "MLB 2K9" is a pretty lackluster performance from 2K Sports.  So that leaves "The Bigs 2."

Overall, this is a very solid game.  It is more of an arcade game than a true baseball sim.  The over-the-top characters, animations, and long balls make this an easy "pick up and play" game.  But if you look a little deeper you'll find a creative Career mode called "Become A Legend" and a full 162 game schedule Season mode for every MLB team.

There are a handful of mini-games unlockable while playing through "Legend" mode.  Normally used to increase your player's attributes, these mini-games provide at least a few minutes of baseball fun, whether by yourself or playing multiplayer.

Visually this game is exciting to look at.  Each of the major league ballparks are recreated with remarkable detail, giving you the feeling of actually being in the stadium.  The game even takes you to Mexico and Japan which each offer their own uniqueness.  The players look like you would see them on TV, at least in the face.  To go along with the arcade style gameplay, the players look like they stepped out of a comic book.

The only drawback to the game is that it may start to feel repetative after the first few games.  There are only a certain number of ways to change up a baseball game.  But the various difficulty levels help to challenge the player.

I haven't had a chance to check out the game on XBL yet but if it is like the first Bigs, then I'm sure it will have its ups and downs.

Overall I am impressed with "The Bigs 2."  It is a solid baseball game that still keeps it fresh and fun, no matter how long you play.  It's probably the best baseball game you can get for Xbox 360 right now.  I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for "The Show" somewhere down the road.

Rating: 8.5/10