Superstar trio makes for one-of-a-kind MLB The Show 25 cover
David Adler
@_dadlerPaul Skenes. Gunnar Henderson. Elly De La Cruz. All on one epic MLB The Show cover.
The superstar trio were revealed as the MLB The Show 25 cover athletes on Tuesday. It will be a one-of-a-kind cover to celebrate the 20th anniversary of MLB The Show by showcasing the future of baseball.
MLB The Show 25 will be released on March 18 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and the Nintendo Switch. Fans can preorder the game starting on Feb. 4 at 9 a.m. ET on TheShow.com and in stores.
The first edition of MLB The Show was released in 2006 with future Hall of Famer David Ortiz as the cover athlete. Twenty years later, MLB The Show 25 marks the first time there's ever been more than one player on the cover of Major League Baseball's flagship video game.
And what a trio to pick. Skenes, Henderson and De La Cruz have taken MLB by storm. They're three of the most exciting young players to watch in the game today.
Skenes, the Pirates' electric ace, is the reigning National League Rookie of the Year after going 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA and 170 strikeouts in his first big league season. He's just 22 years old.
Henderson, the Orioles' star shortstop, was a top-five MVP finisher in the AL in 2024 after a 37-homer, 21-steal season. He's just 23.
And De La Cruz, the Reds' power-speed shortstop phenom, was a first-time All-Star who hit 25 homers and swiped a Major League-leading 67 bags. He just turned 23 in early January.
"Historically, we¡¯ve chosen a single cover athlete for MLB The Show, someone who is at the pinnacle of the sport," said MLB The Show global marketing group manager Todd Liss. "However, with the unprecedented young talent coming into the league, we wanted to represent the changing current climate of baseball and showcase it on our cover. These three players are changing what¡¯s possible in baseball, and we¡¯re changing how many players can be on the cover of The Show."
The three-player cover is a unique way for MLB The Show to continue highlighting the game's brightest young stars, which has been a trend for the game ever since the throwback 2017 edition where Ken Griffey Jr. was on the cover.
20 years of MLB The Show cover athletes
- 2025: Paul Skenes, Gunnar Henderson, Elly De La Cruz
- 2024: Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
- 2023: Jazz Chisholm Jr.
- 2022: Shohei Ohtani
- 2021: Fernando Tatis Jr.
- 2020: Javier B¨¢ez
- 2019: Bryce Harper
- 2018: Aaron Judge
- 2017: Ken Griffey Jr.
- 2016: Josh Donaldson
- 2015: Yasiel Puig
- 2014: Miguel Cabrera
- 2013: Andrew McCutchen
- 2012: Adri¨¢n Gonz¨¢lez
- 2011: Joe Mauer
- 2010: Joe Mauer
- 2009: Dustin Pedroia
- 2008: Ryan Howard
- 2007: David Wright
- 2006: David Ortiz
Skenes is the second Pirates player to make the cover of MLB The Show -- Andrew McCutchen was the first, in 2013. Henderson is the first Orioles player to be on the cover of an MLB The Show game (Cal Ripken Jr. was on the cover of MLB '99, one of the predecessors of the game before it became "The Show" in 2006). De La Cruz is the first Reds player to ever be on the MLB The Show cover.
"MLB is entering this dynamic era, with electric young talent coming up to The Show and changing the way the game is played," Liss said. "We wanted to tell the story of this era by highlighting three of the most exciting young players in the world right now: Elly, Gunnar and Paul."