On last night’s episode of The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, it was revealed that former Yankees captain Derek Jeter is the cover athlete for MLB The Show 23’s collector’s edition. When Fallon made the big reveal, Jeter joked that he was considering coming out of retirement and that it would be easier to do it in a video game.
.@derekjeter is on the cover of the Collector’s Edition of @mlbtheshow 23! #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/pi8Yc3oZq1
— The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) February 2, 2023
The design for the collector’s edition is pretty sleek, with a comic book superhero vibe depicting a Batman-esque spotlight of Jeter’s #2 in pinstripes shining bright over a city skyline.
Derek Jeter is the cover athlete on the MLB The Show 23 collector’s edition!
(via @FallonTonight) pic.twitter.com/qy3L4fQOzY
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) February 2, 2023
As previously mentioned here on Operation Sports, Jeter’s selection as a cover athlete makes a ton of sense, given his enduring popularity. In 2022, ESPN premiered The Captain, a docuseries about Jeter, who was also second on the list of Lids’ bestselling 2022 jerseys. While some baseball icons of the 1990s have fallen out of favor due to steroid scandals, Jeter retains a squeaky clean image. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2021 and was honored with a special celebration at Yankee Stadium last year, fueling speculation that he may return to the Yankees in some front office capacity in the future.
Jeter also has connections to The Show 23’s primary cover athlete Jazz Chisholm. Jeter was CEO of the Miami Marlins when the team acquired Chisholm in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Chisholm was one of the younger players added to the Marlins roster as part of Jeter’s efforts to rebuild the struggling franchise. Due to disagreements over the team’s strategy and issues with certain roster moves, Jeter decided to sever ties with the Marlins last year.
The decision to pair a younger player with a baseball icon on MLB The Show 23’s covers is a smart one. MLB The Show often serves the dual purpose of getting fans excited about the future of baseball while also paying homage to its storied past. The connection between Chisholm and Jeter makes their pairing even more sensible. Hopefully these interesting and somewhat unexpected cover athlete picks bode well for this year’s installment.
