It was a record-setting night for ASU baseball on Thursday as, for the first time in program history, the Sun Devils had five players selected in the first four rounds of the MLB Draft.
Former ASU infielder Spencer Torkelson, the No.1 overall selection by the Detroit Tigers the night before, was joined by teammates Alika Williams, Trevor Hauver, Gage Workman and R.J. Dabovich as the five Sun Devils selected in the draft. Like Torkelson, Williams was also picked the previous evening.
“It was such an incredible night,” Torkelson said to the media after his selection on Thursday night. “There’s such so much adrenaline going through you, it’s insane.”
Stealing the headlines was Torkelson, who became the first corner infielder (first baseman or third baseman) to be selected with the first pick in the draft since Adrian Gonzalez in 2000.
Torkelson finished his time with the Sun Devils just three home runs shy of breaking Bob Horner’s career home run record at ASU, despite having his junior season come to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic. The California native ended with 54 career collegiate home runs.
“He is a strong young man,” Tigers special assistant and MLB Hall of Famer Alan Trammell said. “We’ve got a special guy, there’s no question about it.”
Joining Torkelson in Detroit will be Workman. Selected with the first pick in the fourth round, the Arizona native finished his ASU career with a .372 on-base percentage and 14 home runs.
Workman and Torkelson join a Tigers organization that finished with the worst record in the majors in 2019. But, according to MLB.com, Detroit already holds the fifth strongest minor league system in baseball.
High school infielder and ASU commit Colt Keith was also selected by Detroit in the fifth round.
