Following a historic 2021 campaign for which he was named American League Most Valuable Player, Angels two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani will grace the cover of MLB The Show 22, Sony announced on Monday.

• Pre-order now for April 5

The cover reveal was a memorable one, taking place on a huge 3D billboard in New York City’s Times Square. After a countdown ended at noon ET, the screen fell away to show Ohtani highlights and the cover of the new game, which features images of him hitting and pitching.

Fans can pre-order MLB The Show 22 now ahead of its April 5 launch. The game will be available on PlayStation 4 and 5; Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One; and -- for the first time -- Nintendo Switch.

In 2021, Ohtani posted a .965 OPS with 46 home runs, an MLB-leading eight triples and 26 stolen bases, an offensive performance that in itself would merit MVP Award consideration. But that was just half of the story. The 27-year-old also made 23 starts on the mound for the Halos, recording a 3.18 ERA while striking out 29 percent of the batters he faced.

The AL MVP honor added another accolade for Ohtani, who previously won the 2018 AL Rookie of the Year Award. Prior to signing with the Angels, he was a sensation in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball Organization from 2013-17.

Ohtani is the latest in a long line of stars who have been featured on the game’s cover. Last year, Fernando Tatis Jr. became the youngest player to be The Show’s cover athlete. Others who have been on the cover since the game debuted in 2006 include Javier Báez, Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge, Ken Griffey Jr., Josh Donaldson, Yasiel Puig, Miguel Cabrera, Andrew McCutchen, Adrián González, Joe Mauer, Dustin Pedroia, Ryan Howard, David Wright and David Ortiz.