College baseball’s selection show is just 10 days away and many of the regional hosts are all but determined at this point in the season.
But the top overall seed hasn’t won the national title since 1999, which means there are always a few tantalizing futures to consider from the long- hot pool.
Here is my favorite to win the College World Series before the Division I regionals begin on May 31.
UC Irvine to win College World Series (60/1, DraftKings)
The Anteaters have a Cinderella formula not all that dissimilar from mid-majors on the hardwood. Their success is built on experience.
They have a veteran team that returned this season with nearly its entire lineup intact.
That is a notable achievement in college baseball thanks to the transfer portal and early defections to the MLB draft.
As a result of this continuity, UCI plays tremendous team baseball.
Irvine is 10th in fielding percentage, third in on-base percentage and has six hitters in its lineup who hit .300 or better.
Veteran ace Nick Pinto is one of the most experienced pitchers in college baseball having started 59 times since 2020.
The former freshman All-American is the kind of “Friday Starter” who can put a team on his back in the College World Series.
But the Anteaters’ Batman finally has a Robin. Freshman Trevor Hansen has emerged as a quality No. 2 in the rotation.
He got banged around early in the season, but has been solid in three straight appearances, with 13 strikeouts in his last 12 innings.
West Coast baseball is experiencing a noticeable dearth of quality teams, but when the Anteaters have had the opportunity to face another Pacific power, they have risen to the occasion.
They won the season series against nationally ranked UC Santa Barbara and that could help them with the selection committee at the end of the month.
So could a 13-2 record in their last 15 games during a time when momentum is everything.
Speaking of the state of West Coast baseball, the paper tigers of the Pac-12 — Oregon State and Arizona — could present little resistance to UCI should it be sent to Corvallis or Tucson in the upcoming regionals.
Oregon State’s road woes could end up costing the Beavers the regular-season crown, and ace Jacob Kmatz has been up and down.
He can flash All-American stuff one game and then get shelled the next.
He recently gave up five earned runs and eight hits to Washington State and could struggle against a veteran team like UCI that knows how to get runners on base.
Arizona matches up with UCI rather evenly.
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The Wildcats are outside the top 125 in terms of slugging and rely on a talented staff to grind out low-scoring games.
Arizona and Oregon State meet this weekend to determine the Pac-12’s regular-season crown.
The other factor to consider when playing UCI is that their game fits the profile of a CWS winner.
The cavernous confines of Charles Schwab Field in Omaha favor teams that can manufacture runs as opposed to those that rely solely on the long ball.
This team can string together hits and draw walks at an elite level, which is why this long price is so enticing.
And a final sweetener: The Anteaters lead the nation in road success.
College baseball powers often dominate at home, but with a neutral site on tap in Omaha, it’s always valuable to add teams with significant road success to your futures portfolio.
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