It’s finally that time of year: the College World Series begins in Omaha on Friday.
This year’s event includes teams from 7 different conferences, with only the SEC producing multiple entrants. Four of the top 5 pre-tournament seeds have already been eliminated, with only No. 3-seeded Arkansas surviving the gauntlet that was the Regional and Super Regional rounds.
This field includes a couple of classic College World Series champions from the past decade, namely Oregon State (2018 champions) and Coastal Carolina (2016 champions). There’s also LSU, who won the whole thing just 2 years ago when it was led by Paul Skenes. And then of course there’s the Cinderella story that is Murray State, who pulled off a series of epic upsets to make it to Omaha this June. Arizona, Louisville and UCLA fill out the field for what should be a memorable couple of weeks in Omaha.
College World Series Predictions
Here’s a prediction for every game of the 2025 College World Series:
Game 1: Coastal Carolina vs. Arizona
At some point, people will have to stop doubting Coastal Carolina. The Chanticleers have won 23 games in a row and are No. 1 in Warren Nolan’s ELO rankings entering Omaha. I like what they have on both sides of the diamond. Arizona did very well to upset North Carolina to get to this spot, but I think Coastal Carolina has the edge here.
Pick: Coastal Carolina
Game 2: Oregon State vs. Louisville
Oregon State should be a significant favorite here. The Beavers got past a really good FSU team in the Supers and have a case as the best team remaining other than Arkansas. Louisville made it to Omaha despite not being a Regional host, but I think its run will end sooner rather than later.
Pick: Oregon State
Game 3: UCLA vs. Murray State
Full disclosure: I didn’t think either of these teams would be here. I picked UTSA and Duke to beat the Bruins and Racers in the Supers, but that didn’t come to fruition. Murray State’s bats are legit. That offense is averaging 10 runs per game since the start of the NCAA Tournament. Can UCLA keep up? Yeah, I think it probably can. The Bruins are the biggest favorite (-285 at BetMGM) of any first-round game.
Pick: UCLA
Game 4: Arkansas vs. LSU
This could end up being the best game of the first round in Omaha. There’s no love lost for either side of this rivalry and both teams are feeling good coming out of big-time Super Regional victories. LSU has the best individual pitcher in this matchup, but I think Arkansas has the better staff. I also like the Razorbacks’ lineup more. This is a virtual coin flip, but I’ll take Arkansas.
Pick: Arkansas
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Game 5: Arizona vs. Louisville
This is the first loser’s bracket game of Bracket 1. I expect Arizona would be favored if this matchup occurs, but I actually like Louisville to keep its season alive in this spot. Arizona’s starting pitching has not been good this season and I think Louisville’s bats are good enough to take advantage.
Pick: Louisville
Game 6: Coastal Carolina vs. Oregon State
This is an awesome matchup between 2 of the best teams in the country. Regardless of the outcome, I think we’re likely to see this matchup again in the Bracket 1. I’m going with Coastal Carolina here because I have some questions about Oregon State outside of Corvallis. The Beavers have 1 win all season against a top-25 team (in RPI) away from home.
Pick: Coastal Carolina
Game 7: Murray State vs. LSU
I think we could see an upset here. LSU would be coming off of a deflating loss to SEC-rival Arkansas if it ends up in this elimination game. Murray State would be undermanned against the Tigers, but I think the Racers would bring more urgency to the fight. Murray State could easily put up double-digit runs on an LSU team that would have already used Kade Anderson in this scenario.
Pick: Murray State
Game 8: UCLA vs. Arkansas
Arkansas has an elite statistical profile. The Hogs have one of the very best offenses in the country and a pitching staff that ranks in the top-10 nationally in ERA. I can’t ignore the way Arkansas dominated a very strong Tennessee team in the Supers — the Hogs have National Championship upside.
Pick: Arkansas
Game 9: Louisville vs. Oregon State
This would be a rematch of their opening-round game. I picked Oregon State in that game and I’ll stick with that prediction here. The Beavers will be pretty far into their pitching staff at this point, but so will Louisville.
Pick: Oregon State
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Game 10: Murray State vs. UCLA
This is another exceptionally winnable game for Murray State. The Bruins have a great pitching staff, but offensively their slugging percentage ranks outside the top 80 nationally. Murray State will be an underdog here, but I like the Racers’ bats to come through in a spot where pitching will be thin for everyone.
Pick: Murray State
Game 11: Coastal Carolina vs. Oregon State
This is the Bracket 1 championship. If Coastal wins, it will advance to the best-of-3 championship series. If the Beavers prevail, these two teams will meet again the following day for a winner-take all. I think Oregon State wins this first game, but I’ll take Coastal to advance in the final meeting. Party like it’s 2016.
Pick: Coastal Carolina
Game 12: Arkansas vs. Murray State
Murray State has the bats. Arkansas has the bats and the arms. I think that will ultimately be the difference for the Hogs on this side of the bracket. The Cinderella run has been incredible to watch from the Racers, and a run to the semifinals would make it even sweeter. But Arkansas is too balanced, too talented, too tough and too battle-tested to lose in this spot.
Pick: Arkansas
Championship Series: Coastal Carolina vs. Arkansas
There’s no telling where these teams will be from a pitching standpoint should they ultimately meet for the championship series. Game 1 is set for June 21, which is 8 days after Coastal and Arkansas will play their first games in Omaha. It’s possible they’ll have rested rotations, but it’s also plausible they may need to throw their best arms twice before the championship series just to stay alive.
In a battle of attrition, I have to back the Hogs. Behind ace Zach Root, Arkansas has a ridiculous array of bullpen arms. Five different bullpen pitchers have an ERA under 3.70 with at least 20 innings pitched this season. That’s no easy feat in SEC play. Coastal also has a deep pitching staff with an elite statistical profile, but its strength-of-schedule is outside the top-50 per Warren Nolan. Arkansas’s SOS is 11th. I just trust the Razorbacks more.
Offensively, Arkansas also looks like the better team. The Hogs rank in the top 20 nationally in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. They can score runs in lots of different ways. Meanwhile, Coastal Carolina is 87th in batting average, 45th in on-base percentage and 125th in slugging. Coastal batters also cumulatively strike out almost 25% of the time. That’s not a great percentage considering much of the season was played against Sun Belt pitching staffs.
Pick: Arkansas
College World Series odds
Here’s a look at the odds for the College World Series, courtesy of BetMGM:
Arkansas: +200 LSU: +225 Oregon State: +650 Coastal Carolina: +650 UCLA: +900 Arizona: +1400 Louisville: +1600 Murray State: +3500Arkansas is the favorite, but I think there may still be some value on the Hogs even at +200. The winner of the opening game between the Razorbacks and LSU will likely become the prohibitive favorite to win the whole thing. I like Arkansas there, but it’s a virtual coin flip with Kade Anderson likely to start for LSU.
If you want to avoid the high-leverage nature of that opening round game, I’d also be willing to back Coastal Carolina at +650. The Chanticleers are co-favorites to come out of Bracket 1 along with Oregon State. Coastal has won 23 games in a row for a reason — this is one of the best teams in the country.
The action begins on Friday afternoon with all 4 opening-round games in Omaha.
College baseball predictions: Picking every game of the 2025 College World Series Saturday Down South.
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