Jon Jay pays tribute to Michael Jordan with new White Sox number

When Jon Jay makes his Chicago White Sox debut this spring, he’ll be wearing a number that’s very familiar to longtime fans.

It was 25 years ago that basketball Hall of Famer and Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan sported the No. 45 as he attempted to transition from professional basketball to a potential Major League Baseball career with the White Sox. Now Jay, a 33-year-old journeyman outfielder, is bringing the number Jordan made famous back to White Sox camp, and he’s doing so as a tribute to “His Airness.”

[Batter up: Join or create a 2019 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league for free today]

“Every year, I always have different numbers bouncing around from different teams. I kind of pay tribute to someone in my family,” Jay told NBC Sports Chicago. “I’ve worn numbers for people who have passed away in my life before. This year coming to the South Side I said, ‘Let’s see if someone is wearing 45,’ and it was available so it’s cool.”

Most sports fans associate Jordan with the No. 23. That’s the number he wore for the majority of his basketball career, including at the University of North Carolina. After Jordan abruptly retired from the NBA following the Bulls third straight championship in 1993, he announced plans to try living out his baseball dreams. As part of his career change, Jordan switched to No. 45.

Everyone knows how that venture played out. Though Jordan had a few memorable baseball moments, including delivering a run-scoring single in the Windy City Classic exhibition game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, his baseball career was short-lived. After one season spent playing Double-A ball with the Birmingham Barons, Jordan returned to the NBA.

Jordan actually briefly stuck with 45 upon his return to the NBA in 1995, but went back to 23 for his final three seasons.

At the time of Jordan’s initial retirement, Jay was just 8 years old. But he looks back now in amazement at Jordan’s courage to give up being the very best in one sport to try another sport in the prime of his career.

“Hearing the story later on, it’s truly remarkable that somebody could stop in the middle of being the best and play baseball for a bit and then go back to being the best,” Jay said of Jordan. “I’ve always admired his work ethic and all those little things you hear about how intense he was in practice and just the competitor he was, and that’s something I always try to instill in myself.”

Jay will actually be the 12th player or coach to wear No. 45 for the White Sox since Jordan did in 1994. The most prominent were Carlos Lee, who wore it from 1999 to 2004, and Bobby Jenks, who sported the number while recording the final out of the 2005 World Series. But Jay is the first to acknowledge that Michael Jordan inspired his selection.

It’s the sixth different number Jay has worn to go along with the six different teams he’s played for.

Of course, the number White Sox fans were most interested in hearing about on Tuesday was No. 13. That’s the uniform number Jay’s longtime friend, Manny Machado, wore during his time with the Baltimore Orioles. Once Jay and Yonder Alonso, who’s also Machado’s brother-in-law, were signed by Chicago the hope was Machado would follow. Instead, he took the San Diego Padres 10-year, $300 million offer.

Here’s hoping Jay’s performance and tribute to Jordan is enough to overcome the misplaced blame he’ll surely face following the White Sox failed bid to recruit Machado.

More from Yahoo Sports:

• Former NFL player fatally shot in parking dispute
• QB Cousins angers Minnesota with a tweet
• Just weeks after startup, AAF faced big money woes
• LaMelo Ball still plans to go to college