My guess is the increase of revenue by opening the game up to multiple platforms is greater than what the game is worth to Sony as an exclusive console seller. As you said MLB already consistently sells well every year and that's on a single platform. Surely Sony stand to make a ton more cash by launching on more platforms and opening the game up to a much wider player base.
MLB The Show sells well every year, but It isn't exactly the mega seller you think it is. Sells a couple million units lifetime and doesn't ever really crack top 20 on NPD for the year.
Across Switch, Xbox and PC, they'll sell millions more. It's a big win for Sony.
I feel some of you are weirdly arguing against the value of exclusive games. For example, sure, God of War would sell better if it was on every platform, but do you really think it's worth it to do that by cheapening the value of owning a PlayStation? There's a reason exclusive games exist. They are there to be a selling point for you to buy in to the ecosystem of their $400ish console (or sell you a likely $500 one a year from now).
MLB: The Show series was always one of Sony's secret best exclusives. It releases EVERY YEAR to strong reviews and sells well and literally has an entire sports genre to itself. Few studios within Sony have sold as many games this gen. For a segment of the audience interested in baseball games, their console choice is almost made up for them. Like I said, MLB: The Show literally was the only game(s) I owned on a PS3 and was one of the major reasons I switched from 360 to PS4 this gen. Obviously, Resetera isn't a big sports game board, but this series is a bigger deal outside of this bubble.
Until I hear differently, I really think this was pushed on Sony by the MLB as they basically wanted to increase accessibility and they certainly have a lot of sway as the license is gigantic. Sure, Sony will probably get a lot of $ to make this happen, and they'll certainly sell more copies, but losing a major exclusive and a unique selling point going forward is something that is hard to put a price on. There's a reason exclusive games are THAT important. And for a segment of the population, their "automatic" decision to buy a PS5 just became a hell of a lot more complicated if it is available on Nintendo, Xbox and PC as well.
(And to be clear - I'm legit happy I have more options going forward. The series is great and it's awesome a wider audience will get to play it. Just this as a "win" from a Sony business standpoint doesn't pass the smell test for me.)
