MLB Advanced Media really hit one out of the park (sorry) at the right time with this series. 
While the real sport was trying to grasp at ways to keep onlookers interested and capture a younger audience, R.B.I Baseball got revived and offered quick-hitting gameplay that had a ton of pick-up-and-play potential and was simply a blast. 
It's more of the same this year for the series, now one year removed from revamping pitching and batting.
The options in the batter's box to gun for quality contact or to throw it all into power and hope for a home run is still a fun, arcadey way to work the timing-based experience. Actually hitting a homer still feels a little limp, but overall, it's almost akin to an enjoyable stress-relieving exercise to take part in the offensive side of things. 
Picking from a variety of pitches before winding up and letting it go toward home plate is in again and feels great amid the arcade backdrop. With the modern controls, it's a nice touch to have an effort system that broadens where a pitch could end up over the plate, making for a fun risk-reward sort of minigame. 
Luckily for players old or new, player agency is one of the big-ticket themes of this year's release. There are a handful of batting controls and camera angles players can choose from before or during a game. That doesn't sound like much for modern sports games, of course, but it's notable here because the individual can tailor the experience to their liking, which only makes the gameplay better.