2025 College World Series Predictions: Picking Our ‘Eight For Omaha,’ Super Regional Matchups & National Champion – Baseball America
Source: Baseball America
College Baseball, MLB Draft, Prospects – Baseball America
The 2025 college baseball tournament is set to get underway on Friday, May 30, so Baseball America is here with our final College World Series predictions.
Below, you will find our eight picks for Omaha, super regional matchup predictions and national champion prediction.
Everything about Arkansas points to Omaha. The Razorbacks play with cohesion, rarely reveal glaring weaknesses and check every box, both on paper and in person. Statistically, they’re an elite contender, ranking inside the top 20 nationally in nearly every significant offensive and pitching category. This remains one of the most dangerous and complete teams in the country, and we’re riding with it to reach the College World Series.
No question—this is one of the riskiest picks on the board. Florida would have to win a regional and super regional on the road, then survive the grind of Omaha away from home. But this is also a team peaking at the right time. The Gators played their best baseball down the stretch and drew a regional without a true offensive juggernaut, as Coastal Carolina and East Carolina both rank outside the top 80 in scoring, and potential super opponent Auburn has its own offensive inconsistencies. Florida’s balanced roster and battle-tested core give it a real shot to scrap its way through. And when you have Kevin O’Sullivan, a coach who’s made nine Omaha trips, you can’t count this program out.
Head coach Link Jarrett already knows the path to Omaha—he just took Seminoles there a year ago—and now he has Florida State positioned to make a return trip. The road won’t be easy. The Seminoles must navigate a dangerous Northeastern team and an emotionally-charged Mississippi State squad playing inspired baseball after a late-season coaching change. A potential super regional matchup with TCU or Oregon State would be a grind as well. But with Jamie Arnold and Joey Volini forming an elite one-two punch on the mound and enough offensive firepower behind them, we like Florida State’s chances to break through to the College World Series again.
Sometimes emotional motivation matters, and Georgia Tech is riding a powerful one as head coach Danny Hall chases one final trip to Omaha in his retirement season. But sentiment aside, this team is built to make a run. The ACC regular season champions stack up favorably against host Ole Miss across the board, ranking 15th nationally in batting average (.314), 11th in slugging percentage (.535), 31st in on-base percentage (.415) and 18th in wRC+ (123). The pitching staff isn’t overpowering but should be steady enough to complement the offense. If the Athens Regional turns chaotic—as we suspect it might—Georgia Tech is well positioned to take advantage and draw a winnable super regional, too.
We’ve had LSU in Eight for Omaha since midseason, and there’s no reason to change now. The Tigers are a well-oiled machine with a clear path back to the College World Series. This regional is manageable, and a potential super regional matchup with Clemson looks very winnable. LSU has the tools—offensive firepower, frontline arms and postseason pedigree—to make another deep run.
Oregon has knocked on the door the last two years with back-to-back super regional runs but fell just short of Omaha. This feels like the year the Ducks finally break through. They return their entire 2024 super regional lineup and boast a pitching staff anchored by veteran lefthander Grayson Grinsell. The regional draw—Arizona, Cal Poly and Utah Valley—is manageable, and North Carolina may not have the offensive firepower to keep pace with an Oregon team that can win games on both sides of the ball.
If No. 2 Texas had been awarded the top national seed over Vanderbilt, no one would have blinked. The Longhorns won the SEC regular season title in their first year in the league and backed it with an elite statistical profile. Their draw might be even better than their seed suggests, as they appear to have one of the clearest paths to Omaha in the entire field. That’s why we’re picking them to reach the College World Series in year one under head coach Jim Schlossnagle.
Vanderbilt will test whether old school baseball still plays in June. We’re not picking the Commodores to win it all with that approach, but we do think it’s enough to carry them to Omaha. While many teams chase raw power and velocity, Vanderbilt has doubled down on offensive athleticism, bat-to-ball skills and strike-throwing with diverse pitch mixes. The result: middling offensive numbers but elite run prevention. That formula can still play—at least far enough to reach the College World Series.
Follow along with live NCAA Baseball Tournament scores, plus analysis from each regional as games continue throughout the weekend.
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