Very interesting feature in the forthcoming Xbox 360, Windows PC, and PLAYSTATION 3 game MLB Front Office Manager by 2K Sports. The game allows players to create, manage and lead an MLB Team through a 30-year career. The detail here is mind boggling — you manage the team year-round, allocate scouting resources both domestically and internationally, track the development players in your minor league system, decide what kind of statistics you want to emphasize and…

bid on Japanese free agents.

Nice touch. A’s GM Billy Beane is featured as an in game tutor, who will offer in game advice, encouragement and guidance to players. Beane was out on the interview trail last week and has a good Q&A with the fantasy baseball writer at The Sporting News:

BB: Well, I’m a little bit embarrassed because, to be honest with you…when I first saw [this game], I was amazed. If you had me sit down and list on a piece of paper, in an hour, all the parts of my job — which scouting obviously is a major part that I have to oversee — [the game developers] had actually included so many parts that I probably would’ve left off my original list thinking that most people either wouldn’t be interested in it or didn’t know about it. For instance, allocating your scouting resources. … You know, most Major League clubs will have a domestic and international [scouting department], and included in that international is a number of teams that will bid on Japanese players. This game not only covers that and all the areas all over the world, but it also forces you to sort of pick and choose depending on the market that you’re running — whether it’s a large-market club or a small-market club — where you allocate those resources and scouting. And, say, you choose domestic scouting, you may heavily weight your scouting on the West Coast or the East Coast or the Southeast, and it will be applied to your budget accordingly. Every little nuance of scouting that I can think of — because I live the job — is covered, and I’m not sure I could’ve made that list out and still not left things out they have in the game. It’s really cool, I’m not kidding.

Hmm. Sounds like someone might be trying to get a review copy of this before too long. The game is geared toward fans of fantasy baseball.

One of the features is on-line fantasy leagues. How much do you know about fantasy baseball in general? Beane says he doesn’t play fantasy baseball because he doesn’t want to be embarrassed publicly.

BB: I’ll tell you one thing — I’ll never play on-line myself because I don’t really feel like being outsmarted and embarrassed. I say this with total candor and honesty. Particularly with Major League Baseball, if you look at the type of people who are running clubs now and then you go to the fantasy leagues and on-line gaming, they’re really starting to blend into two. I’ve had many people say, “Hey, why don’t you join my fantasy league baseball league with me?” And, quite frankly, I’m not really willing to expose myself to that arena because there are some really bright people out there.