CYBER : THE TOYS OF SUMMER AND BEYOND.

Byline: Tom Hoffarth

Word on the street is that Mark McGwire has brought baseball back into America's homes again. That's news to those who've already been holed up in their living rooms, leasing time on their TV screens to play one of the half-dozen or so video baseball games out there. Programming McGwire and friends to swat home runs on a daily basis isn't anything special.

McGwire and Sammy Sosa will be targeted as cover boy spokesmen for the next mess of home video games - consider the title ``McGwire's Millennium Mash'' a lock. But measured up against today's competition, it's Ken Griffey Jr. who has the upper hand in the category of best video endorsement deal that goes along with a game worthy of such attention.

Before interest in baseball wanes again - or, more importantly, before the latest crush of video football games hit the shelves - take some cuts with the the cyber horsehide that's out there to buy or rent (rated on a scale of 0-to-5):

Nintendo 64 games 

Major League Baseball featuring Ken Griffey Jr.: Nintendo software, $49.95.

Geared toward the total hitting experience (surprised?), the object for the batter is to align his orange dotted circle with the small white square (where the pitch is coming) in the time between the delivery and contact. Master this, and it's a swatfest. The bigger the circle, the better the hitter. Animation ranks first-rate as batters flinch at inside pitches and shake their heads when they whiff. Tops also in selection of viewing angles, graphics and sound. Rating: 4-1/2.

All Star 99: Acclaim, $59.95.

Colorado's Larry Walker, who lends his likeness to this game, also writes in the instruction manual that his favorite part is the Create-A-Player mode, where you can make up a ``Frankenstein-sized forkball pitcher'' serving up taters to squatty power hitters. Hey, Lar, most games have this element, too. The creators could have devoted more time to making the game a little easier to play, especially from the mound. Player realism is top-notch (in fact, Griffey's batting stance looks more like his own here than in his video-endorsed version), as are graphics. Rating: 4.

Mike Piazza StrikeZone: Good Times Interactive, $39.95.

Originally priced at $54.95, it's become a collector's item for anyone who wishes o' No. 31 was still wearing Dodger blue (although in this game, the color is more like Dodger teal). Of course, you can adjust the rosters and put Piazza on . . . what team is he on today? Or you can be nostalgic and pull up the Dodgers' starting lineup provided, which includes Billy Ashley hitting seventh and playing center field. You know Piazza had something to do with having him in his game. Rating: 3-1/2.

Sony PlayStation games

MLB 99: Sony Computer, $39.99.

Ever think you'd hear Vin Scully's voice programmed into a parallel video universe? Here it is, someone with the foresight to have recorded calls by the Dodgers icon so he can forever make home-run calls and refer to curveballs as ``the deuce.'' Only problem, there's no storytelling when the games drag on. Add to the all-American element is Cal Ripken Jr.'s face plastered all over it. The graphics are major-league caliber and the game play is crisp. Dodgers public address announcer Mike Carlucci is also included. And if you play a game at Dodger Stadium, there's even the sound of a vendor in the stands yelling ``Nachos!'' Rating: 4.

Triple Play '99: EA, $39.99.

A very cool opening with video clips of the '97 season (which is one edge PlayStation games have over N64). But after that, the only real special feature is a ``head cam'' that allows the hitter to watch the pitch from the batter's box rather than from the catcher's position. The annoying factor is the play-by-play calls by Jim Huston are about three seconds late. Buck Martinez's analysis makes up for it a little. Maybe the best part of this game are the TV commercials that cover boy Alex Rodriguez did for it. Rating: 4.

VR Baseball '99: Interplay, $44.99.

Anxious game players will appreciate the abbreviated version of the national anthem before each game. But after that, the graphics are B-level and the players are displayed with strange dark shadowing that looks kind of like charcoal drawings. At least it's better than the artwork of the Angels' Darin Erstad on the box's cover. Rating: 2-1/2.

Bottom of the 9th '99: Konami, $32.99.

The least-expensive game in the group, and for good reason. The game's endorser, Brady Anderson, kind of sums everything up. It's yesterday's news. Rating: 2.

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Photo

PHOTO Commissioner Bud Selig mans the controls of Nintendo's Ken Griffey Jr. video baseball game during the All-Star Game fanfest in July.

Joe Picciolo/Associated Press