The rumored deal between Take Two and Major League Baseball Players' Association is finally a reality. As we report in our news story, the seven-year pact essentially makes Take Two the sole third-party developer and publisher of MLB games. From the press release:

　　"Take-Two will have exclusive rights among third-party publishers to develop and market simulation, arcade and manager-style baseball video games on the current and next-generation PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo, personal computer and hand-held video game systems."

　　Unlike the terms of the exclusive license deal between the NFL and EA, however, this deal does not eliminate all competition--just that of other third party developers (pronounced "EA Sports"):

　　"At the same time, manufacturers of video game systems will have the opportunity to develop and publish baseball simulation games for their own platforms."

　　Translation: Sony's MLB franchise will stick around on the PS2. As well, Microsoft and Nintendo could potentially bring back High Heat or the Ken Griffey Jr. series for their consoles, if so inclined.

　　The odd man out here, however, doesn't just include EA and its MVP franchise. Smaller development houses such as Diamond Mine, developers of the popular Diamond Mine Baseball series, as well as Midway and their MLB Slugfest title are presumably cut out by this deal as well. As we've all learned with the EA/NFL deal, the cost of exclusivity can be tough to bear, especially for gamers who will have to deal with a slimmer MLB videogame selection beginning in 2006.