My theory on the death of the MVP series is simple: Take-Two retaliated for EA's role in the death of NFL 2K (which is a debatable role, as the NFL is as much of a villain as EA is) by outbidding EA for the third-party exclusive rights to MLB.
The worst part? MLB 2K suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucked. Hard.
An American commercial for 'MVP Baseball 2005' on the PlayStation 2.