Major League Baseball plucked 21 players from ASU’s roster and recruiting class this summer. With the signing deadline now mercifully behind us, let’s take a look at who’s left.

Major League Baseball’s annual raid of Arizona State’s baseball roster was particularly vicious this year. Fourteen players from last year’s team and seven inbound recruits opted to turn pro before Friday’s signing deadline.

The Sun Devils got a bit of good news when fourth-round pick Jason Kipnis declined to sign with the Padres and received more when seventh-round pick Johnny Coy, a utility player who also has a sweet jump shot, passed on an offer from the Phillies.

The news almost got sweeter. Powerful first baseman Eric Hosmer, the third overall pick in the draft, texted Pat Murphy when the deadline passed and said he was coming to school. But MLB granted Hosmer and the Royals an extension and the parties agreed to a $6 million deal.

Hosmer hit.470 with 11 home runs and 27 RBIs as a high school senior and would’ve looked great in the position manned the last few years by Ike Davis, Brett Wallace and Jeff Larish.

So where does that leave us? Here’s some reckless speculation on what our lineup might look like in 2009.

Yes, the asterisks denote incoming freshmen. After ASU’s 2005 College World Series appearance, the team lost Larish, Travis Buck, Tuffy Gosewisch, Jason Urquidez and Erik Averill. And even though the Sun Devils reloaded by getting Davis, Wallace and Petey Paramore to campus, the 2006 postseason run was a short one.

The 2009 postseason could be too.

Tags: ASU Baseball , Brett Wallace, eric hosmer, erik averill, Ike Davis, jason kipnis, jason urquidez, jeff larish, Johnny Coy, Pat Murphy, petey paramore, Travis Buck, tuffy gosewisch // Add Comment »