MLB 09 The Show is a game that is definitely worth playing no matter what level baseball fan you are.
Let me start with the basic gameplay. The hitting is extremely hard at first, especially if you are a beginner to the series as I am. Unlike some other games, you have no idea where the pitch is going to land in the strike zone. That is, there is no marker, you just have to look at the ball and try to figure out where it is going to hit. This is just like how you have to hit if you really were a major league baseball player. You have the ability to guess the type of pitch you think will be thrown and where you think it will be thrown, and if you are correct then a light will flash and you will be told you were correct. If you guessed wrong, however, there is no help. This is great because it is realistic, however it can be extremely frustrating if you can't get used to it quickly enough to meet your expectations. As for pitching, you basically push a button to determine which pitch type you will throw. Then a meter will show up, and you have to push the button again to determine how fast you will throw, and one final time to determine how accurate you will throw. While this is happening you must move the control stick to decide where you want to throw. Fairly straighforward, and it is not too hard. You will be surprised though how many balls you will throw. This just adds to the realisticness and makes the game better. The fielding is great, just move the player to where you want to go and then push a button to make him throw. The baserunning is my only problem, as it forces you to move the control stick forward to go to the next base. However, as you turn the bases, forward changes and you will constantly find yourself getting caught in between bases because the mechancics are very hard to master.
Season mode is fun. You can play all 162 games or simulate them or even manage them. You can make trades (and the computer does not make really stupid trades with you, at least I have not been able to get it to) and sign free agents. My only problem with season mode is that you can't do three way trades or add incentives to contracts. However, most games don't have these features either, so don't not buy the game based solely on this. Season mode is not a mode that I like to go that deeply into in most games anyway, just because it does get kind of repetetive sometimes, but the season mode in MLB 09 The Show is definitely a quality mode that will pass a lot of time, depending on how much you like season modes. If you like to play through many seasons, this mode is a game unto itself.
There is a mode called Road to the Show (RttS and some people like to abbreviate) that allows you to create your player and choose his appearance, name, skills, position, etc. You get a certain number of points to begin with that allow you to buy skills with. So if you have 100 points, for example, you can spend them on boosting your speed. As you play games, you can earn more points to continue to boost your character's abilities throughout your career. You can get traded, sign as a free agents, get released, etc. This mode is exceptional and very fun as well. Here, my problem is that it is very tough to get called up to the majors. You can be hitting .400 in the minors but they will not call you up because your abilities are too weak. So you might have to boost your power as a goal before they allow you to get called up, which can be very frustrating because you may want to make your character a speedster. Road to the Show is definitely the meat and potatoes of the game though, and you can easily spend dozens of hours trying to become a Hall of Famer.
The online play is hit or miss. It allows you to chat with other people online and update your rosters and even read articles from MLB.com. When you play, your rating goes up or down so it is easy to find people of your skill level. If you can connect it is very fun playing a real person. However, there is usually lag and this can be a real issue as you may have prior experience with in other games.
The player creator/editor is also very good. It is easy to navigate and you can place your points wherever you want them to change a player's abilities however you like. If you are creating the next Hall of Famer for RttS or editing a player that you feel the developers did not create accurately enough, the editor is very simple. You can assign theme music for home run celebrations or batter walkups or bullpen entrances and also design your player's appearance. The only problem with the appearance settings is that there are not many options for faces, eyes, facial hair, etc. Other games like MLB Power Pros and The BIGS 2 have many, many more. The hair in this game is basically a matter of what color you want it to be. The style is always the same basic haircut, with just the lengh of the sideburns varying. Even Manny Ramirez is missing his signature dread locks which is very dissapointing.
Over all, MLB 09 The Show is a game that will definitely entertain you for a very long time. It has enough minor flaws that just take something missing and leaves you with a hungry for more feeling, but there is still much fun to be had. I rank this game an 8. At this point, I would wait until MLB 10 The Show, but if you really want a baseball game now, it is hard for me to justify you not buying this game.