Baseball's Deven Marrero earns seventh All-American nod

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Three Arizona State baseball players have been selected to CollegeBaseballInsider.com's Preseason All-America Team. Junior shortstop Deven Marrero was named to the first team, the fifth preseason All-America first team nod he has earned leading up to the Sun Devils' season opener Feb. 17 at Packard Stadium in Tempe. His other first-team recognition came from Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, Perfect Game and College Baseball Daily.

Marrero, considered one of college baseball's premier defensive infielders, is the defending Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year and a 2011 First Team All-Pac-10 honoree. Marrero started 54 games at shortstop for the Sun Devils last season, hitting .315 (69-219) with two homers and 20 RBI. He also added 33 runs, 10 stolen bases, 14 doubles and three triples. A native of Davie, Fla., Marrero has earned all-conference accolades in each of his two seasons with the Sun Devils and set an ASU freshman record with his team-leading .397 batting average in 2010. He was also named ABCA Second Team All-West Region, Second Team Academic All-Pac-10 and Second Team Academic All-District VIII.

Junior infielder Joey DeMichele, who was named an honorable mention, won the Pac-10 batting crown last season with a .368 (71-193) average and also led the conference in slugging percentage (.663), triples (7) and total bases (128). Appearing in 52 games, primarily as a designated hitter, he collected 51 RBIs and a team-leading nine home runs. A native of Phoenix, he was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2011 Tempe Regional and was a First Team ABCA All-American, a Third Team Baseball America All-American, a First Team ABCA All-West Region choice and a First Team All-Pac-10 pick.

Junior Brady Rodgers, a right-handed pitcher, also earned honorable mention recognition after going 9-4 last season with a 2.75 ERA. He struck out 87 batters while walking only nine, and allowed just one home run all season, tied for fewest in the Pac-10. A 2011 All-Conference honorable mention, Rodgers was second on the team with 15 starts and 98.1 innings pitched. A native of Richmond, Texas, he recorded his first career complete game shutout at Washington and struck out a career high 10 against New Mexico in the opening game of the NCAA Tempe Regional.

Opponents on the preseason All-America team include: Justin Jones and Tony Renda of California, Mark Appel, Kenny Diekroeger and Stephen Piscotty of Stanford, Michael Lorenzen of Cal State Fullerto, Alex Mejia, Kurt Heyer and Joey Rickard of Arizona, Shaun Cooper of Utah, Adam Plutko of UCLA and Tony Bryant of Oregon State.

The Sun Devils open the season by hosting a three-game series against Western Michigan from Feb. 17-19 at Packard Stadium in Tempe, Ariz. First pitch on Friday night is at 6:30 (MT). For the full 2012 schedule, click here.