We're talking baseball apps, and scores and stats

Now that it's baseball season, smartphone applications are making it easy to check scores during important meetings and dinner dates. Just keep nodding.

ESPN ScoreCenter, free for Android and iOS from ESPN Inc., lets you check any score, anytime, for virtually any sport. To set up the app for your favorite sports and teams, you'll need to log in with a Facebook account or register at http://espn.go.com. Then log in from the app and start selecting.

While following a live baseball game, you can see who's at bat, check stats, tap on "game feed" to read about each pitch, tap "social" for a Twitter feed, or comment in an area called "Section 140," where you are warned that your posts "may be used on TV and other ESPN media platforms." Additional icons let you post to Twitter and Facebook.

In settings, you'll be prompted to tell the app whether you want to be alerted to team news, or to when your teams start games, score, or finish games.

MLB.com At Bat, the baseball app from Major League Baseball, is free for Android and Apple but stresses its limitations by constantly offering paid upgrades to view or listen to live games - you pick home or away announcers. The minimum upgrade is $2.99 a month for game audios, a live "game of the day," other features, and elimination of banner ads. But you can get notifications and box scores, read news, see video reports, and send everything you find out to followers and friends without cost.

Yahoo Sportacular, by Yahoo Sports, free for Android and Apple, covers major sports including NASCAR and World Cup soccer. A "trending" button on the menu delivers breaking news across the sports spectrum.

Philly Pro Baseball, from the parent company of The Inquirer, gives the combined coverage of the home team from Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News, and Philly.com writers, as well as play-by-play reports from all games.

at 215-854-5114, rkanaley@phillynews.com