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Shohei Ohtani to grace cover of MLB the Show 22

Angels DH/SP and reigning AL MVP will be the first Asian athlete to be featured on a cover of a video game in the U.S for the four major sports.

By Benjamin Zweiman Updated
Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Angels stands on first base during the eighth inning against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on October 02, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images

Los Angeles Angels DH/SP and reigning AL MVP Shohei Ohtani was named the cover athlete for MLB the Show 22. Here’s a look at Ohtani on the cover of the video game, which can be pre-ordered now and released on April 5th.

Ohtani is the first Asian athlete to be featured on a video game cover for one of the four major sports in the United States. Of course, the other who has been on plenty of video game covers for a non-Big 4 sport is Tiger Woods. Here’s what Ohtani had to say on the honor of being a cover athlete:

“I was very excited about the possibility and it actually came true,” Ohtani told ESPN through an interpreter. “This game has a lot of history. It’s one of the only baseball games that has been out here, so it makes me want to get better on the field and live up to the hype.”

Last year, Fernando Tatis Jr. was the cover athlete and the year before it was Javier Baez. Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Yasiel Puig, Miguel Cabrera and Andrew McCutchen are among the plethora of cover athletes for the video game. In 2021, the game also featured a special edition cover with Jackie Robinson on the front.

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