The 2025 NCAA college baseball season — at least for Division I, anyway — is fast approaching. Much of the attention will be fixated on the power schools in the power conferences. But, don’t sleep on the mid-majors. Our last 2025 NCAA college baseball preview highlights notables from across the stronger mid-major conferences.
A-10
We’ll start with the A-10, which may look similar to how it did in 2024. Richmond and VCU are considered co-favorites by the coaches, with Saint Louis narrowly behind. The Billikens finished last season as the regular season champions. However, VCU won the postseason title and the auto berth.
The Spiders return Aaron Whitley, the A-10 Defensive Player of the Year. The grad student hit .367 last season for Richmond and he’ll be joined by familiar faces. Phil Bernstein, Jordan Jaffe, and D.J. Pacheco all hit above .300 last season for Richmond in 2024.
VCU, meanwhile, lost ace Christian Gordon to the pros, as well as hits leader Brandon Eike. The Rams do have an experienced team, including senior starter Everett Vaughan.
AAC
The East Carolina Pirates lost significant pieces this summer. Ace Trey Yesavage went in the first round of the 2024 MLB Draft, while Carter Cunningham, Wyatt Lunsford-Shenkman and Jacob Jenkins-Cowart also went pro. ECU’s top freshman, outfielder Bristol Carter, transferred to Auburn. Zach Root, thought to be the replacement for Yesavage, went to Arkansas.
Still, ECU won the preseason poll, as the Pirates — despite all of those losses — are expected to be competitive once more.
However, watch for Wichita State. The Shockers placed four on the all-preseason team, highlighted by sophomore infielder Camden Johnson. Johnson hit .326 as a freshman.
American East
The Bryant Bulldogs have built a strong program in Rhode Island over the years. However, 2024 was the first season Bryant captured the postseason conference title. Bryant will look to do so again, with five preseason all-conference players.
Notable names include former Boston College pitcher Luke Delongchamp and infielder Zac Zyons. Zyons hit .369 with eight home runs and 22 extra-base hits last season.
ASUN
No school in the NCAA last year had a higher slugging percentage than Austin Peay (.661). Brody Szako, who slugged 15 home runs for the Governors, was a big reason why. However, Austin Peay is not expected to win the conference.
Rather, Stetson, the school that’s produced multiple Cy Young Award winners. The Hatters, despite losing Kyle Jones to UF, placed three hitters in the preseason all-conference team. Lorenzo Meola and Yohann Dessureault lead the charge for Stetson.
Big South
High Point is expected to win the conference, per the coaches in the Big South. The Panthers netted three players on all-conference team. However, arguably the most interesting names in the conference won’t be playing for High Point.
USC Upstate outfielder Koby Kropf blasted 20 home runs last season, forming a strong lineup for the school alongside now-WVU outfielder Jace Rinehart. UNC Asheville pitcher Colby Guy, who threw briefly in the Cape last summer, was named the preseason hurler of the year,
Big West
The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos entered 2024 with an incredibly deep time and for the most part, played like a top team. That, however, ended in the Regionals. Santa Barbara beat up Fresno State, only to score five runs over their last three games & lose to Oregon twice.
Like in 2024, expectations are high once more for the Gauchos. Tyler Bremner, arguably the second-best pitcher available in the 2025 MLB Draft, will be extremely important, as he struck out 104 over 88 frames last season. Bremner should line up as the team’s ace, after he swung between the rotation and bullpen between 2023-24.
He’s not the only pitcher to watch for Santa Barbara, who will start 2025 at #22 in the coaches poll. Cole Tryba struck out 65 as a freshman. Hudson Barrett, who struck out 82 and posted a 1.92 ERA as a freshman in 2023, is also on the roster. Barrett missed most of 2024 thanks to an arm injury.
Santa Barbara is the expected favorite out of the conference. But, don’t sleep on Hawai’i, who nearly made the top-25 poll.
C-USA
Dallas Baptist remains the heavy favorite once more in 2025. C/OF Grant Jay, who hit 42 home runs between 2023-24, could sneak in Day 1 of the 2025 MLB Draft. Jay will be joined by a deep pitching staff that includes former top high school recruit James Ellwanger, Jarrod Jenkins, and Luke Pettitte (yes, the last name should sound familiar).
Ellwanger dealt with a flexor strain for much of 2024 but pitched very well in the Cape in 2024. Pettitte, meanwhile, was named to the preseason all-Conference-USA team and will look to keep the family business afloat. The right-hander struck out 43 in his freshman campaign.
It’ll be a very different year for other schools, particularly Liberty. The Flames lost two key starters, including Cole Hertzler, to the pros.
Horizon
Wright State was picked to win the six-team conference in the regular season. The Raiders’ 2025 roster includes notable returning hitters Gus Gregory and Carson Clark, plus sophomore pitcher Griffen Paige.
Ivy
The Ivy League traditionally gets off to a late start, and that will be the case in 2025. Ivy Leagues won’t begin play until the second weekend of the 2025 regular season.
The Penn Quakers won last year’s title, despite Columbia going 17-4 in the conference’s regular-season game schedule. It was the second-straight year the Quakers went on to the NCAA Tournament. However, Columbia — who finished with the fourth-highest SLG in the nation in 2024 — may very well be the favorites.
Infielder Griffin Palfrey is a name to watch for the Lions, given he hit .380 last season for Columbia. Palfrey, a British Columbia native, is a career .342 hitter. He’ll be joined by Sam Miller and Cole Fellows, two of the better hitters in the Ivy in 2024.
SoCon
Wofford blasted their way to the NCAA Tournament last spring thanks to a historic offense, finshing fifth overall in total hits. Now, the rebuilding effort begins. Marshall Toole was drafted by the Yankees, while standout freshman catcher Daniel Jackson joined Georgia this summer.
The Terriers are expected to competitive in 2025. However, UNC-Greensboro was voted to top Wofford and the rest of the pack.
Sun Belt
Expect the Sun Belt to be hotly competitive in 2025.
Coastal Carolina has a new manager, as Gary Gilmore retired after the 2024 campaign. Kevin Schnell brought back Blake Barthol, undrafted as a sophomore last season, plus likely first-round pick Caden Bodine. Bodine hit .367 as a freshman in 2023 and did even better in the Cape that summer. His numbers (.328, 9 HR & 29 XBH) as a sophomore were good enough.
The Chanticleers’ pitching staff includes Egg Harbor, New Jersey native Cameron Flukey, who struck out 83 batters in his freshman season and is a likely first or second-rounder come 2026. Flukey is joined by Chance Mako, a top recruit from NC State two summers ago who transferred to Coastal.
The Troy Trojans, meanwhile, cracked the top-25 in the USA Today coaches’ poll. The Trojans’ roster is headlined by catcher Brooks Bryan, who blasted 18 home runs last season for Troy. It’s a team heavy on juniors and seniors.
There’s also Southern Miss, a team that’s traditionally at or near the top of the Sun Belt every year. The Eagles snared themselves former All-Big East outfielder Joey Urban from Butler, plus have power hitters Davis Gillespie and Nick Monistere back in town for another season. The two combined for 19 of the team’s 65 home runs in 2024.
The Valley
Can perennial power Indiana State do it again in 2025? The Sycamores have been one of the best stories in the NCAA over the last several years, hosting a Regional two years ago and last season, winning two contests down in Lexington.
However, the Sycamores lost Randal Diaz (Nationals), Luke Hayden (Reds), Dominic Listi (Clemson), and Luis Hernandez (LSU) after the 2024 campaign.
With an intriguing team that includes a lot of transfers, including former UIC pitcher Ryan Karst and former top New York high school product Carlos Pena, it’ll be interesting to see how Indiana State fares this year.
WAC
The gem in Arizona is expected to roll in 2025. Grand Canyon, the team with arguably the deepest roster in the WAC, was voted to finish in the preseason coaches poll.
The Antelopes have an incredible 1-2 combo of Isaac Lyon and Connor Mattison, with the former named to the preseason all-WAC team. Mattison struck out 80 in his freshman year, while Lyon struck out 79. GCU’s lineup is deep, led by hefty infielder Zach Yorke.
However, the two big names to watch are not on Grand Canyon. Abilene Christian pitcher Brett Lanman, who posted a sub-4.00 ERA and 79 strikeouts as a freshman, was named the preseason conference pitcher of the year. Meanwhile at Cal Baptist, Nick Dumesnil, a toolsy outfielder, could push his way into the first round of the 2025 Draft.
WCC
Finally, the West Coast Conference. The WCC doesn’t get as much love compared to its West Coast peers but routinely churns out talent. For example, Portland starter Nick Brink, drafted in 2024.
San Diego University, a school that’s produced multiple first-round picks, was picked to win the WCC by its coaches. Three players — Austin Smith, Logan Reddemann, and Jack Gurevitch — were named preseason all-conference players.
Make sure to check out our Big 10 and Big 12 season previews.