‘MLB The Show’ is an annually released baseball video game by San Diego Studios. Similar to Madden for NFL or 2K for NBA, it is the main gaming franchise for baseball fans.
While there isn’t a Madden-esque curse involved with the cover athlete selection, fans are always curious on who will grace the cover. It also feels like Madden or 2K tends to select a top player in the league, while recently, MLB the Show has used its platform to elevate a lesser known player to give fans an inside look into their personality.
While not officially released yet by San Diego Studios, it appears that Reds star shortstop Elly De La Cruz has leaked that he will grace the cover of ‘MLB the Show 25’, which is expected to release sometime in March.
Why is Elly De La Cruz ‘MLB The Show’ cover athlete?
Update: In response to De La Cruz and Henderson’s videos, Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes also says that he is supposed to be the cover athlete for the game. At first we thought it was going to be a shared cover between two players, but now it could be three and we don’t know if more could be on the way!
Update: Shortly after De La Cruz appeared to “leak” that he was on the cover, Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson posted saying that it was supposed to be him on the cover. Could we be getting the first joint cover in the history of the game?
De La Cruz has been an instant hit with fans since being called up by Cincinnati in 2023. He is hard to miss, standing at 6-foot-5 while ironically playing a position with the word “short” in it. De La Cruz is a scary blend of power and speed. Through 258 games in his career, he has stolen 102 bases and hit 38 home runs. If he can get a little more consistent at the plate, there is a real chance that he is able to average a 40-40 season.
The Cincinnati faithful had been tracking De La Cruz’s rise up through the minors, but most fans first learned about him when he got the call up to the majors. It’s always a big deal when players get called up the first time, and De La Cruz had about as good of a reaction as anyone. He even reached base safely three times in his debut.
Cincinnati has smartly started building around De La Cruz. With his blend of size, speed and power, he should develop into the face of the franchise if he can lower his strikeout rate. He is a highlight reel waiting to happen, especially given how much he likes stealing home.
List of ‘MLB The Show’ cover athletes
De La Cruz becomes the 19th cover athlete of the annual video game release. He follows in Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s footsteps, who was on the cover of MLB The Show 24.
| Year | Player | Team |
| 2006 | David Ortiz | Red Sox |
| 2007 | David Wright | Mets |
| 2008 | Ryan Howard | Phillies |
| 2009 | Dustin Pedroia | Red Sox |
| 2010 | Joe Mauer | Twins |
| 2011 | Joe Mauer | Twins |
| 2012 | Adrian Gonzalez | Red Sox |
| 2013 | Andrew McCutchen | Pirates |
| 2014 | Miguel Cabrera | Tigers |
| 2015 | Yasiel Puig | Dodgers |
| 2016 | Josh Donaldson | Blue Jays |
| 2017 | Ken Griffey Jr. | Mariners |
| 2018 | Aaron Judge | Yankees |
| 2019 | Bryce Harper | Phillies |
| 2020 | Javier Baez | Cubs |
| 2021 | Fernando Tatis Jr. | Padres |
| 2022 | Shohei Ohtani | Angels |
| 2023 | Jazz Chisholm Jr. | Marlins |
| 2024 | Vladimir Guerrero Jr. | Blue Jays |
| 2025 | Elly De La Cruz | Reds |
