Could Utah field a historic major league team? We put one together

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 them to compete against more well-rounded teams. They’d need to rely heavily on their defense, clutch moments and managing matchups effectively. A solid manager like Herman Franks could help keep the team competitive, but they’d need to find ways to maximize the strengths of their roster in a modern context.”

Several pitchers who just missed the cut, including Bruce Hurst (Dixie High School) and Jeremy Guthrie (BYU), would have brought depth to the starting rotation, while Utah high school and colleges have produced some effective relievers that would have shored up the bullpen.

So, without further ado, let’s play ball. Here’s the all-Utah, all-time, all-MLB team:

Pitcher

Jack Morris (BYU), 1977-94

Morris won the World Series with the Tigers, Twins and Blue Jays, made five American League All-Star appearances and was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018. He was the World Series MVP after going 2-0 with a 1.17 ERA for the Twins in 1991, including a masterful 1-0 complete-game shutout of the Braves in Game 7. Morris, who played 14 of his 18 big league seasons with the Tigers, had a career 254-186 win-loss record and a 3.90 ERA.

Catcher

John Buck (Taylorsville High), 2004-14

Buck played for seven major league teams during an 11-year career, his longest stint being six years with the Kansas City Royals. He made the American League All-Star team in 2010 with the Toronto Blue Jays. He played much of his last pro season with the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees. He hit .234 with 134 home runs and 491 RBIs in his major league career.

First base

Wally Joyner (BYU), 1986-2001

Joyner captivated fans in his rookie season with the California Angels, earning Anaheim Stadium the nickname “Wally World.” He made his only All-Star Game appearance that year and finished second in Rookie of the Year voting. He had even better stats his second year but could never duplicate those 34 home runs and 117 RBIs again. He returned to the Angels for his final season after stops in Kansas City, San Diego and Atlanta. He amassed 2,060 career hits with 204 home runs, 1,106 RBIs and a .289 batting average.

Second base

Glenn Hubbard (Ben Lomond High), 1978-89

Hubbard spent 10 years of his 12-year career with the Atlanta Braves, anchoring the right side of the infield with first baseman Dale Murphy for two years before Murphy moved to center field. Hubbard was a National League All-Star in 1983. He is pictured in a 1984 Fleer baseball card with a large python draped around his neck. He played his final two seasons with the Oakland A’s, retiring with a .244 batting average, 70 home runs and 448 RBIs.

Third base

Vance Law (BYU), 1980-89, 1991

Law played 10 years in the majors, including three each with the Montreal Expos and Chicago White Sox. He made the 1998 National League All-Star team as a member of the Chicago Cubs. He holds the American League record for the longest errorless game by a third baseman, playing all 25 innings of the longest game by time — 8 hours, six minutes — in MLB history in 1984. Law retired hitting .256 with 71 home runs and 442 RBIs during his career.

Shortstop

Spencer Adams (Utah, Ogden High), 1923-27

Adams only had 395 at-bats in 180 career games with four teams but he gets the nod mostly because options at short are few and he has an interesting history. He played in two World Series with the Washington Senators in 1925 and on a New York Yankees team in 1926 that featured his roommate Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth. Both Series were losses. For his career, Adams hit .261 with zero home runs and 38 RBIs.

Outfielders

Cory Snyder (BYU), 1986-94

Snyder hit 24 or more home runs in his first three seasons with the Cleveland Indians, accounting for more than half his major league total. He finished fourth in Rookie-of-the-Year voting in 1986. He played at every position but pitcher and catcher with five teams, the majority of time in right field. He batted .247 with 149 home runs and 488 RBIs in his career.

Dane Iorg (BYU), 1977-86

Iorg was a two-time World Series champion, first with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1982, where he batted .529 as a designated hitter. He won a title again with the Kansas City Royals in 1985, including the game-winning hit as a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the ninth in Game 6. He had stops with the San Diego Padres and Philadelphia Phillies. Iorg retired hitting .276 with 14 home runs and 216 RBIs.

Billy Cowan (Utah), 1963-72

Cowan played for six teams, including four years with the California Angels. He finished his career hitting .236 with 40 home runs and 125 RBIs. His lone season with the New York Mets earned him this entry in “The Amazin’ Mets 1962-1969″ by William Ryczek: “I understand that he’s faster than (Lou) Brock. Cowan had the potential to be a star if he could learn to make consistent contact, for his major weakness was the strikeout.”

Designated hitter

C.J. Cron (Utah), 2014-23

Cron has played half his 10 major league seasons with the Los Angeles Angels. He made the National League All-Star team with the Colorado Rockies in 2022, finishing the year with a career-best in RBIs and one home run shy of his career best. Currently a free agent, Cron has hit 187 home runs with 604 RBIs to go along with a .260 batting average.

Closer

Rick Aguilera (BYU), 1985-2000

Aguilera played 19 seasons in the majors, including 11 with the Minnesota Twins. He won the World Series as a reliever with the Twins in 1991 and a starter with the New York Mets in 1986. He made three consecutive All-Star appearances from 1991-93. He amassed 318 career saves, ranking 24th on the all-time list.

Manager

Herman Franks (Utah, East High School)

Franks played six years in the majors with four teams, missing four seasons for military service during WWII. He turned to coaching shortly after retiring as a player in 1949. He managed the San Francisco Giants from 1965-69, teams that featured future Hall of Famers Willie Mays, Orlando Cepeda, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry. He managed the Chicago Cubs from 1977-79. He compiled a combined 605-521 won-loss record.