Anyone who opened MLB The Show 26 this week probably had the same reaction: what is this April Fools program supposed to be? The rewards look like a bad joke, with lowly common cards for names that should never be sitting at 64 overall. It's easy to laugh and move on, especially if you'd rather save time for ranked or flipping MLB stubs, but that'd be the wrong call. If this follows the same pattern players saw before, these throwaway commons won't stay throwaway for long. They're very likely to flip into Diamond versions right after the event window closes, which suddenly makes this one of the sneakiest valuable grinds in the game.

The moments are designed to trick you

The weird part isn't that the program exists. It's how SDS presents it. You'll jump into a moment, read the big text, and think the objective is obvious. It isn't. The real goal is hidden in the smaller blue text underneath, and most of it is the exact opposite of normal baseball logic. One moment wants you to avoid hits. Another wants you to get thrown out. Pitching challenges can ask you to allow runs while staying away from strikeouts. So if you go in trying to play clean baseball, you're actually wasting time. Once you realise the joke, it gets much easier. Just slow down, read the fine print, and do the dumb thing on purpose.

How to clear everything faster

The quickest method is honestly to play like your controller died. If a pitching moment needs runners on base, don't nibble. Just miss the zone or groove one right down the middle and let the CPU do the rest. If you accidentally smoke a ball into the gap during a hitting challenge, stop at first and kill the extra-base hit. Need to avoid an RBI? Bunt badly, pop up, or chase junk. If the task is getting caught stealing, send the slowest runner you have and leave way too early. It feels wrong the whole time, but that's the point. This program rewards bad decisions, and once you lean into that, the moments go by much quicker than people expect.

Don't forget the stat missions

After the moments, you've still got the cleanup work. The 500 PXP with common players isn't hard, just a little boring, so it helps to stack those cards into one lineup and get it done in a single stretch. The other missions are stranger. You may need to allow hits or commit errors, which sounds annoying until you remember the game gives you tools to sabotage yourself. Turn on button accuracy, hold the throw into the red, and you'll launch the ball all over the place. It's sloppy, but efficient. A lot of players get hung up here because they keep trying to play properly. Don't. This is one of those programs where messing up on purpose is the fastest route.

Why this grind matters

There's a reason experienced players are knocking this out right away. The cards may look useless today, but if they upgrade the way everyone expects, this turns into easy value for very little effort. You also pick up extra packs while moving through the path, and that early bonus sweetens it more if you finish quickly. So even if the whole thing feels like a prank, it's still smart to get it done before the switch flips and the community starts showing off boosted rosters pulled together with surprise upgrades and a few lucky MLB The Show 26 packs in the mix.