With conference tournaments quickly approaching, the 2022 college baseball season has been as unpredictable as ever. Wins are now more important than ever as teams look to lock up the best seeding they can in their conference tournaments. That being said, let’s dive into the latest college baseball rankings.
Be sure to catch up on the previous rankings:ย Week 1ย |ย Week 2ย |ย Week 3ย |ย Week 4ย |ย Week 5ย |ย Week 6ย |ย Week 7 | Week 8
1. Tennessee (37-3, 17-1)
After losing their first SEC game last week, Tennessee has continued to roll through their opponents. This week, they swept previously 19th-ranked Florida. After winning 8-2 and 3-0 in the first two games, the Volunteers needed extras to complete the sweep. After falling behind 4-0 through six, they came back to tie it with one run in the seventh and three in the ninth. Freshman designated hitter Christian Moore drove in the tying runs with a two-out, two-strike single, then mashed a game-winning two-run shot in the 11th. Tennesse became the first team in SEC history to start conference play 17-1.
CHRISTIAN MOORE IN THE CLUTCH.
Vols 3 outs away from another sweep ๐ pic.twitter.com/eLZrh0q8jc
— 11Point7: The College Baseball Podcast ๐ (@11point7) April 24, 2022
Previous Ranking: 1
2. Oregon State (31-8, 13-5)
The Beavers move up to number two in the rankings after winning their last four games, including a sweep over Washington. After the first game was a tightly contested extra-inning affair, Oregon State made easier work of the Huskies in the final two games, as they won 8-0 and 7-1 to complete the sweep. Wade Meckler hit four doubles in the series, including a go-ahead two-run double in the seventh of Sunday’s meeting. He also mashed the game-tying homer in the eighth inning on Friday.
Wade Meckler says tie game pic.twitter.com/rWbmh9oait
— T.J. Mathewson (@tjmathewson) April 23, 2022
Previous Ranking: 4
3. Stanford (24-12, 11-7)
While playing three teams this week, Stanford lost just one of five games, to Grand Canyon on Saturday. The Cardinal took both of their games against San Diego State and the one against Cal Poly on Tuesday. Junior Brett Barrera broke a 4-4 tie with a two-out, two-RBI triple in the top of the ninth on Sunday. Stanford continues Pac-12 play with a series against Washington this coming weekend.
Previous Ranking: 5
4. Virginia Tech (28-9, 12-7)
The Hokies were perfect this week, as they won all five of their games including sweeping Boston College. Cade Hunter hit a bases-clearing double in the seventh inning of Sunday to break a 3-3 tie to help secure the sweep. The junior catcher went 2-for-4 in the game as he hit another double earlier in the game. Virginia Tech has now won 18 of its last 21 games.
Previous Ranking: 8
5. Southern Mississippi (32-8, 16-2)
The Golden Eagles have continued to rise as they have now won 14 games in a row. This weekend, they swept Rice including 10-run ruling them on Sunday. Their 14 wins in a row ties a school record and they have won 22 of their last 24 games. With 12 games left in the regular season, Southern Mississippi has a four-game lead in the conference. Carson Paetow blasted a grand slam in the seventh inning on Sunday to get to end the game at 12-2.
Previous Ranking: 9
๐๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐๐จ ๐ก๐๐ ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ๐๐๐ง ๐จ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฅ ๐งน๐งน๐งน#EverythingMatters | @CarsonPaetow pic.twitter.com/AAlQ6jhzoQ
— Southern Miss Baseball (@SouthernMissBSB) April 24, 2022
6. Miami (31-9, 16-5)
After dropping their series over Virginia Tech last week, the Hurricanes bounced back to take two out of three from Pitt. They scratched out the first game, 2-1, in 10 innings behind a walk-off single from first baseman CJ Kayfus. Then it was a lot easier in game two as they wrecked the Panthers 17-2 behind a four-run first and six-run fourth.
Previous Ranking: 6
CJ KAYFUS WALK OFF. MIAMI TAKES THE OPENER pic.twitter.com/fApnswCChh
— 11Point7: The College Baseball Podcast ๐ (@11point7) April 23, 2022
7. Gonzaga (26-11, 13-5)
The Zags took two of three from Saint Mary’s over the weekend after also splitting a two-game set against Oregon State. The win was their highest-ranked win in program history, led by a seven-run third inning en route to a 13-6 victory. The Bulldogs’ series win over Saint Mary’s was their sixth straight West Coast Conference victory, the first time they have won their first six conference series.
Previous Ranking: 7
8. Oklahoma State (27-13, 10-5)
It was a rough week for Oklahoma State, as they lost to Oral Roberts and lost their series to TCU. The loss on Tuesday to Oral Roberts was a rough 15-9 defeat in 12 innings. They then won the first game of the TCU series before dropping the final two. They have a big test this weekend as the Cowboys travel to Texas to face the Longhorns.
Previous Ranking: 2
9. Arkansas (31-9, 12-6)
The Razorbacks dropped a series to Texas A&M after coming off a sweep of LSU last weekend. They fell behind by eight runs after four innings on Sunday and fell just short of a comeback, losing 11-10. The Aggies jumped on Jaxon Wiggins for five runs in the first inning, knocking him out after he recorded just one out.
Previous Ranking: 3
10. Vanderbilt (28-11, 9-9)
With a series win over Kentucky, the Commodores stay put at ten in the rankings. The series was Vanderbilt’s first road SEC series win of the season. On Friday, they won 10-0 with Chris McElvain and Christian Little pulling off the combined no-hitter of the Wildcats. A 3-2 loss on Saturday made Sunday’s game a rubber match, which Vanderbilt took 5-3.
Previous Ranking: 10
11. UConn (32-8, 8-1)
The Huskies lost their first Big East game this weekend but took the series over Villanova. All three games were close contests, with UConn winning 4-1 and 2-1 while dropping the middle game 4-1. Casey Dana recorded a sac fly in the ninth inning to give the Huskies a walk-off win to take the rubber match.
Previous Ranking: 11
12. Notre Dame (26-8, 11-7)
Previous Ranking: 12
13. Maryland (32-8, 9-3)
Previous Ranking: 15
14. TCU (27-13, 12-6)
Previous Ranking: 16
15. Virginia (31-10, 13-8)
Previous Ranking: 18
16. Texas Tech (29-14, 9-6)
Previous Ranking: 20
17. Texas (30-13, 9-6)
Previous Ranking: 21
18. Florida State (24-15, 11-10)
Previous Ranking: 13
19. LSU (27-12, 10-8)
Previous Ranking: 23
20. Georgia (28-12, 11-7)
Previous Ranking: 24
21. UCLA (27-12, 11-7)
Previous Ranking: 25
22. Auburn (29-12, 11-7)
The Tigers rejoin the rankings after sweeping South Carolina to bounce back from a series loss to Mississippi State. It was their first sweep of the season after coming behind in game two and holding onto leads in the first and third games. Blake Burkhalter closed Sunday’s game out for his SEC-leading ninth save after Auburn took the lead late.
Previous Ranking: NR
23. Georgia Southern (27-12, 14-4)
For the first time this season, Georgia Southern is in these rankings after their third straight Sun Belt series win and second straight sweep. The Eagles swept South Alabama after losing a tight 11-inning game, 6-5, to Florida State on Wednesday. They scored seven unanswered runs on Sunday to complete the sweep.
Previous Ranking: NR
24. Texas State (32-9, 15-3)
The Bobcats rejoin the rankings following winning their ninth game in a row. They defeated UTSA on Tuesday before sweeping Little Rock over the weekend. Texas State won the middle game of the series by a massive 30-4, with six hitters having multi-hit games and shortstop Dalton Shuffield going 5-for-5 with three RBI and four runs scored. They scored in every inning but the eighth and scored six in three innings and five in one.
Previous Ranking: NR
25. Texas A&M (25-14, 10-8)
With their series win over Arkansas, the Aggies join the rankings for the first time this season. They nearly wrecked a huge lead in the game on Sunday, before graduate southpaw Jacob Palisch shut the door. He came on with the bases loaded and no outs in the eighth. Palisch surrendered two runs on a double in the eighth but pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to close the game and the series.
Previous Ranking: NR
Falls off rankings:ย Florida, Alabama, NC State, Georgia Tech
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Main Image Credit: From Hub City Spokes
