No. 1 Wake Forest is the team to beat as NCAA baseball season begins.
The GIST: Stock up on gummy worms and settle in for some romance — it’s NCAA baseball’s opening day. A whopping 305 Division I teams will take today’s field in pursuit of the sport’s Holy Grail: a ticket to June’s Men’s College World Series (MCWS) in Omaha.
Teams to know: Reigning champ No. 4 LSU could nab another natty this year, but after they lost college baseball’s top two players to July’s MLB Draft, No. 1 Wake Forest is the team to beat. LSU ousted the Demon Deacons from last year’s MCWS in an 11-inning instant classic, but Wake’s veteran talent gives them this season’s edge.
- LSU must also contend with the cutthroat SEC, which has six preseason Top-10 teams. Leading that list? MCWS runners-up No. 2 Florida, who boast one of the game’s most exciting players, junior pitcher and reigning home run leader Jac Caglianone.
What to watch: Unlike their female counterparts, baseball’s opening weekend doesn’t feature many blockbusters. There are just two Top-25 matchups on deck: No. 9 Tennessee vs. No. 21 Texas Tech tonight at 8 p.m. ET, and No. 12 Duke vs. No. 18 Coastal Carolina Sunday at 3 p.m. ET. But that means the weekend’s ripe for upsets, so grab your peanuts and Cracker Jack, and let’s play ball!
