It’s here! The 2024 college baseball tournament has arrived, and while the College World Series is still two weeks away, with the DraftKings Sportsbook) as I provide my college baseball power rankings.
College World Series odds and baseball power rankings last updated on May 28, 2024.
2024 College World Series Odds & Power Rankings
College Baseball: 2024 College World Series Odds & Power Rankings
2024 College World Series Odds
| Team | Odds (5/13) | Odds (5/20) | Odds (5/28) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas A&M | +500 | +600 | +500 |
| Tennessee | +750 | +550 | +600 |
| LSU | +2500 | +4000 | +900 |
| Arkansas | +600 | +700 | +1000 |
| Kentucky | +2000 | +1200 | +1000 |
| Wake | +1400 | +1000 | +1200 |
| Clemson | +1200 | +1300 | +1300 |
| Oregon St | +1500 | +1100 | +1500 |
| UNC | +2200 | +1500 | +1500 |
| FSU | +1500 | +1800 | +1800 |
| Duke | +1500 | +1800 | +2000 |
| Georgia | +3000 | +2500 | +2200 |
| Virginia | +3000 | +3000 | +2500 |
| Okla. St | N/A | N/A | +3000 |
| NC State | N/A | +4500 | +3500 |
| Vanderbilt | +3000 | +3500 | +3500 |
| SCAR | +4500 | +4000 | +3500 |
| Florida | N/A | N/A | +4000 |
| ECU | +2000 | +2000 | +4000 |
| Oklahoma | N/A | +5000 | +4500 |
| Miss State | +5000 | +4500 | +4500 |
| Alabama | +3500 | +4000 | +5000 |
| Texas | N/A | N/A | +5000 |
College Baseball Power Rankings
No. 1 Texas A&M: +500 at DraftKings
It feels strange to rank a team that bowed out of its conference tournament in two games as the top team heading into regionals, but that’s what the oddsmakers are doing, and that’s what I’m doing, too.
In the SEC tournament, Texas A&M lost to Mississippi State (starting their Friday starter against an A&M reliever) and Tennessee (using their usual Friday one-two of LHP Chris Stamos and RHP A.J. Causey against A&M’s LHP Ryan Prager).
It was concerning to see Prager get knocked around by the Vols, but the tournament draw was huge for A&M — the Aggies wouldn’t have to face Tennessee again until the finals. The best team in their Regional is Louisiana (No. 39 in the RPI, 6-6 in Quad 1 games).
After Regionals, the Aggies will likely get the winner of UC Santa Barbara (No. 13, 3-3 in Quad 1 games) and San Diego (No. 19, 3-7), both of whom rank 90th-plus in strength of schedule. Oregon (No. 52, 5-4) is a sleeper to advance but shouldn’t be a huge challenge.
No. 2 Tennessee: +600 at DraftKings
The Vols stay at No. 2 (and likely saw their odds lengthen) despite an impressive SEC tournament win because of their draw. The Knoxville regional won’t be easy, as Southern Miss (No. 26 in the RPI, 8-8 in Quad 1 games) is truly battled-tested and outranks all of Texas A&M’s possible opponents.
Worse, after Regionals, Super Regionals will likely bring either East Carolina (No. 22, 5-2) or Wake Forest (No. 9, 8-14) — again, far trickier opponents than anyone that Texas A&M could face at that stage of the tournament.
Possible opponents on the way to the College World Series finals in Omaha on Tennessee’s side of the bracket include LSU (No. 23, 10-14) and Arkansas (No. 5, 13-12), giving the Vols four of the top-six teams in oddsmakers’ eyes as possible matchups all before the final series. The only teams that the Vols dodge are Texas A&M and Kentucky.
It’s a brutal potential schedule for the tournament’s No. 1 seed, so it’s not shocking to see their odds worsen week-over-week. The extra wear-and-tear of winning the SEC tournament could also be an issue. Time will tell if the Vols can overcome a not-so-great draw.
No. 3 Florida State: +1800 at DraftKings
Texas A&M may have won the draw, but Florida State is a close second. To show you why, let’s pair up teams up and down the odds board with their best possible Super Regional (or Regional!) opponents by betting odds:
No. 1 Texas A&M: UC Santa Barbara (+6000)
No. 2 Tennessee: Wake Forest (+1200)
No. 3 LSU: North Carolina (+1500) – Regionals, not a host
No. 4 Arkansas: Virginia (+2500)
No. 5 Kentucky: Oregon State (+1500)
No. 6 Wake Forest: Tennessee (+600), not a host
No. 7 Clemson: Vanderbilt (+3500) – Regionals; Oklahoma State (+3000)
No. 8 Oregon State: Kentucky (+1000)
No. 9 North Carolina: LSU (+900) – Regionals
No. 10 Florida State: Alabama (+5000) – Regionals; Oklahoma (+4000)
There are a ton of high-quality matchups in Supers, but only Florida State manages to dodge any teams with odds equal to or shorter than +3000 before Omaha. Sure, Alabama is a tricky Regional opponent, and sure, Oklahoma is no cakewalk in Supers, but those are all potential opponents that are far worse than what the teams immediately above them on the board are staring down.
It’s not just scheduling, either. The Noles just made it to the ACC championship game, losing to Duke, after scoring wins over Georgia Tech, Virginia and Wake Forest, helping them jump to No. 7 in the RPI with an 8-8 record in Quad 1 games. There’s an argument for putting Clemson at this spot, as they’re No. 8 in the RPI with a 10-8 record in Quad 1 games and no possible opponent with odds better than +3000, but it’s not strong enough for me.
No. 4 Clemson: +1300 at DraftKings
Yes, the Clemson Tigers got exposed in the ACC tournament, losing their first game to a Miami team that didn’t even make the Field of 64. They’re still at No. 4 on this list because of their draw, which is far better than what most other teams got.
Clemson’s path to Omaha features Vanderbilt (No. 20 in the RPI, 15-20) in regionals and likely either Oklahoma State (No. 11, 11-12 in Quad 1 games) or Nebraska (No. 28, 3-1) in supers, but the oddsmakers don’t respect those teams much.
The Tigers also benefit from avoiding Tennessee, as they’re on the same side of the bracket as Kentucky and Texas A&M. While I wouldn’t be surprised to see this team get knocked out before Omaha, it’d be far less surprising than several teams trading with shorter odds.
No. 5 LSU: +900 at DraftKings
I struggled to pick a team for No. 5 on this list, but we’ve just got to go with the third-best team in oddsmakers’ eyes. The LSU Tigers did not have a good regular season, but they rallied to make the SEC tournament championship, scoring wins over Georgia, Kentucky and South Carolina (2x) before ultimately falling to Tennessee.
The Tigers now rank just No. 23 in the RPI with a 10-14 record in Quad 1 games. That’s not great. They’ll also have to go through North Carolina (No. 4, 8-9 in regionals). The silver lining is that their best possible opponent in Supers is Arizona (No. 30, 3-9) or DBU (No. 17, 9-2).
Nos. 6-10: The Best of the Rest | 2024 College Baseball Odds & Power Rankings
No. 6 Kentucky: +1000 at DraftKings
The strongest argument for the Kentucky Wildcats was always their impressive record in Quad 1 games, but that record got worse in the SEC tournament with their 1-2 performance that included losses to LSU and South Carolina.
No. 7 Arkansas: +1000 at DraftKings
The Hogs’ Achilles’ heel was laid bare at the SEC tournament. Losses to both Kentucky and South Carolina because of a lack of offensive output and poor defensive numbers when ace LHP Hagen Smith wasn’t on the mound dropped the Hogs to No. 5 in the RPI.
No. 8 North Carolina: +1500 at DraftKings
The UNC Tar Heels were No. 5 on this list last week. They drop to No. 8 despite remaining No. 4 in the RPI after a four-run loss to Wake Forest cut their ACC tournament run short, dropping their Quad 1 record to 8-9. Drawing LSU in the Regional is brutal, too, even if the second-round matchup isn’t scary.
No. 9 Oregon State: +1500 at DraftKings
Oregon State got a reasonably favorable draw aside from the possible matchup with Kentucky in Supers. Aside from Kentucky, the biggest threat to Travis Bazzana and the Beavers is UC Irvine, which clocks in at No. 27 in the RPI with a 4-1 record in Quad 1 games.
No. 10 Georgia: +2200 at DraftKings
Georgia clocks in at No. 10 on this list not because of an unfavorable draw — the Bulldogs have only UNC Wilmington (No. 34 in the RPI, 7-5 Quad 1 record) and Georgia Tech (No. 48, 10-14) to worry about in Regionals, and then likely either only NC State (No. 14, 12-15) or South Carolina (No. 21, 15-20) to worry about in Supers, all of whom own odds of +3500 or worse — but because of their shaking pitching staff. The unit was exposed versus LSU in the SEC tournament. If Charlie Condon or Corey Collins have an off day, the Bulldogs don’t have the pitching to make up the gap.
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