A handful of players who starred on the diamond in Utah made Opening Day major league rosters for the 2025 season that started this past week.
But what would an all-time starting lineup of big leaguers who played high school or college baseball in Utah look like?
We scoured baseball sources, including Baseball Reference and Baseball Almanac, to come up with an all-time MLB team consisting of players who prepped or played college ball in the Beehive State. The nine position players include a Hall of Famer, All-Stars, World Series champions and even Lou Gehrig’s roommate. We also threw in a manager, designated hitter and closer for good measure.
It’s a well-traveled bunch. All but two played for at least four teams and one played for seven. They’re strong on pitching, a little weak on hitting, though there are a couple of big bats, at least early in their careers.
For this all-time team, we included only players who played high school or college baseball in Utah. We excluded Utah-born players who didn’t actually take an at-bat or throw a pitch in the state. We also left out players with obvious ties to Utah but who never played the game here.
For example, Atlanta Braves legend and Utah resident Dale Murphy attended BYU in the offseason during his career but didn’t play baseball there. Danny Ainge, a Toronto Blue Jays infielder before joining the Boston Celtics, played basketball at BYU, but not baseball. Another, 12-year major leaguer Duke Sims, was born in Salt Lake City but played high school and college ball in Idaho.
We also asked ChatGPT how this all-Utah team would fare on the field. Here’s the (artificial) intelligence report:
“This team would likely perform as a middle-of-the-pack squad in today’s MLB. They have a strong pitcher in Jack Morris, a few key contributors like Wally Joyner, Cory Snyder and Rick Aguilera, and some clutch performers who could shine in postseason moments. However, their offensive inconsistency, lack of elite power, and potential pitching depth issues would make it difficult for ...
