Tigers' Verlander To Pitch For 2K Sports MLB 2K12

Verlander adds the cover position to the Player of the Year and American League Outstanding Pitcher honors he received this week, as voted on by his fellow players.

A teaser spot shows Verlander on the mound. As he readies to throw a pitch, his uniform switches from the Tigers to other AL teams. Text asks, “Don’t you wish you had Justin Verlander on your team? Now he’s on ours. Welcome to the cover, Justin.”

Verlander was 24-5 with a 2.40 ERA and 250 strikeouts in 251 innings in 2011, including the second no-hitter of his career (May 7 against the Toronto Blue Jays). In addition, he was the first Detroit Tigers pitcher to win 20 games in a season since 1991 (when Bill Gullickson was 20-9) as he led the Tigers to an AL Central title and into the 2011 American League Championship Series.

“It’s a dream come true to be on the cover of Major League Baseball 2K12,” Verlander said in a statement. “I’ve worked closely with 2K Sports on the MLB 2K series since 2007, and I couldn’t be more excited to continue my relationship with such a great baseball game.”

According to Jason Argent, vp-marketing for 2K Sports, “Justin’s amazing performance this season speaks for itself. Between his second career no-hitter and leading the league in virtually every pitching category, I can’t think of anyone else but Justin Verlander to serve as the face of Major League Baseball 2K12.”

Major League Baseball 2K12 will be available this March for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 2 and 3, Wii, PSP, Nintendo DS and Windows PC.