Potential Cinderellas of NCAA Baseball

We’ve made it to conference championship weekend, what a wild ride it has been, and still could be, these last two days leading up to Monday’s selection show. For those who are dialed in, the frontrunners (or favorites) and dark horses have shown their true colors, leaving us to wonder: who can muck this thing up? Who can be the shockers or Cinderellas this June? After being on it this past week, I believe I’ve found 3 very polished candidates.

Dallas Baptist: C-USA – 40-14

The Patriots can mash the hell out of the ball, so the excitement factor with them is there. Now heres the thing, for the casuals, don’t be turned away by the C-USA. This isn’t your football C-USA; they’ve got some dudes in there who can challenge DBU. Also, Dallas hasn’t been shy in non-conference play... taking on LSU, Oklahoma, TCU, among others. Their team batting average is .307, led by Nathan Humphreys and Grant Jay, who’ve combined for 36 HRs. They also recently got one of their top arms back in Mitch Bucknam. Lastly, let’s not forget Andy Pettitte’s son, Luke Pettitte. If they get the right regional, watch out for a run to Supers. These Patriots have been regulars in the regionals over the past decade. Now they’ve got a squad they think can shock the country with a run to Omaha.

UC Irvine: Big West – 41-13

The ANTEATERS! Top-tier nickname, without a doubt...but also top-tier ballers too. This Irvine team has been very good in a deep Big West conference, and similar to DBU, tested themselves outside of it as well. While they don’t have the gaudy power numbers, they do hit for average as a team (.305) and are great at going station to station. SS Colin Yeaman is the guy to watch out for, hitting .350 with 13 HRs. Then throw in 3 starting pitchers with ERAs under 4.50...whew you’ve got something cooking. Some say they’re still in the hosting conversation, but if not, whoever gets these guys is in trouble. For the longtime college baseball fans, you know that Irvine is no stranger to Omaha, so they could re-find the magic of their past.

Northeastern: CAA – 47-9

The Huskies are scary!! They have been in one wild type of groove, winning 26 straight as I type this out. They’re for some reason not going to host, so wherever they land, that 1-seed will be sweating bullets with NU coming in. A .290 team average with a big three-headed monster of Cam Maldonado, Harrison Feinberg, and Jack Goodman. But here’s the difference-maker: 190 SBs as a team! These boys RUN! WOAH! What about the mound? Oh, just a starting rotation with ERAs of 1.82, 2.30, and 2.45, respectively. All led by big lefty Will Jones. Then, in the bullpen, comes closer Charlie Walker with a 1.18 ERA. This team is going to be a VERY popular pick to make a run... with bringing a hectic style of ball to the table, which fans will love immediately. The Huskies have been on a run the past few years, but the tournament hasn’t been kind, they hope to change history next week.

A couple more teams to keep an eye on would be the UTSA Roadrunners, Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, and Creighton Blue Jays. All of them are on the cusp of potentially catching fire and making waves.

Now, a big thing to include for those that don’t know: for the regional round in college baseball, it’s pods of 4 teams seeded 1–4 in a double-elimination bracket. The winner moves on to the Super Regionals, a best-of-three series, to then be one of the 8 left for Omaha and the College World Series.

Here’s the HUGE asterisk with regionals: you’ve got the best 16 host sites, but then the seeding behind those 1s can get funky, as geography plays a huge part in the committee’s decisions. So for our Cinderellas here, someone like a 40-14 Dallas Baptist could get stuck in a #4 overall Texas Longhorn regional. The college baseball seedings are tricky tricky.

Either way, I can confidently say: no one wants to see Dallas Baptist, Northeastern, or UC Irvine in their regional next week.