The NCAA Infractions Appeals Committee has upheld a one-year postseason ban on Arizona State's baseball program, making the Sun Devils ineligible for the 2012 postseason.

The NCAA Infractions Committee ruled in December that violations in the ASU baseball program constituted a lack of institutional control and barred the Devils from the postseason for one year. The school appealed that punishment, so the team was allowed to participate in the 2011 postseason pending the results of the appeal. ASU argued that three violations were secondary rather than major, but the Appeals Committee today reduced only one major violation—for training at Athletes Performance—while upholding the all-important lack of institutional control charge.

The Sun Devils have already self-imposed punishments such as scholarship reductions, vacating wins and the 2007 Pacific-10 Conference title.

Sun Devils coach Tim Esmay, who took over after Pat Murphy was forced to resign as a result of the NCAA investigation, issued a statement Friday: "We are disappointed that we will not be able to participate in the postseason in 2012. The goals for this program will not and have not changed. We will take the same approach towards every practice and every game, nonconference and Pac-12, that we have always taken. Our goal to be the best team in the Pac-12 remains our focus. Sun Devil baseball is and will remain one of the premier collegiate baseball programs in the nation. [...] Continue Reading »