This was certainly an interesting week in DII baseball. Ashland head coach John Schaly set and Southern New Hampshire and East Stroudsburg engaged in a 21-inning Power-10 war.
Of course, the Tampa Spartans just kept winning and will spend yet another week atop the Power 10. That 21-inning marathon helped boost the Warriors into the Power 10 for the first time this season, but little else changed aside from a few slot shifts.
DII BASEBALL 2025
馃搳&苍产蝉辫;The previous Power 10
馃敭&苍产蝉辫;Wayne's way-too-early guesses on the eight for Cary
馃弳 Tampa looks to set record for most DII baseball championships
The Power 10 rankings are based on my conversations with coaches and insiders in the game along with what I see on the ball field. There is no vote, just me, selection metrics, stats and a whole mess of notes from watching baseball. College baseball spans five months 鈥 more than any other sport 鈥 with most teams playing four to five games a week. Baseball is a grind, and you have to look much deeper than the wins and losses than in any other sport. That is what I try to explain below.
The DII baseball Power 10 rankings (Week ending March 16)
No. 1 Tampa | Previous: No. 1. The Spartans are the top team in the South Region and the best in DII baseball. They have played one of the toughest strengths of schedules in DII with a top-20 mark and just took yet another series from a team that had a winning record (Palm Beach Atlantic). Jordan Williams is a beast and with consecutive three-stolen-base games, now leads DII with 37 in 23 games.
No. 2 Central Missouri | Previous: No. 3. I suppose on paper Minnesota State may metrically be the top of the Central, but don't be fooled. The Mules keep rolling, taking two from Quincy and splitting with a Davenport team that may be the best in the Midwest. They are now 17-4 and their top three hitters 鈥 Chase Heath, Jacob Steele, and Vance Tobol 鈥 are simply not cooling off.
No. 3 Westmont | Previous: 4. The Warriors swept Azusa Pacific this weekend, bringing their record to 22-3 and 17-1 in the PacWest. It's only March, but they are starting to run away with the conference and have a firm lead atop the West Region as well. How about pitchers Bryan Peck and Zach Yates? In the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, Peck improved to 3-0, picking up his 29th career win, tying the Warriors' all-time mark. Yates shut the door for Peck's historic win, picking up his 18th career save, which also tied the Warriors' all-time mark.
No. 4 Catawba | Previous: No. 7. Catawba is atop the Southeast Region, which, if you follow the Power 10 rankings with any frequency, you know I think is the deepest and strongest region in DII baseball. You could argue Catawba could be one spot higher and you may be correct. Catawba ekes past Lenoir-Rhyne because the Indians have played a tougher schedule and have wins over Coker, UNC Pembroke, Mount Olive and Belmont Abbey.
No. 5 Angelo State | Previous: 5 (tied). The metrics may not fully support this 鈥 the Rams have a weaker strength of schedule thus far and didn't do much to improve that with two wins against an NAIA school this week 鈥 but this team is playing like the Rams do. And the Rams are a perennial threat for the title, so there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. They have scored the most runs in DII baseball (305) and are hitting .396 with a 1.137 OPS as a team.
No. 6 Lenoir-Rhyne | Previous: 8. Lenoir-Rhyne is right up there with Catawba in the Southeast Region. The Bears also have very meaningful wins and at 21-4, have yet to lose a series this season. The Bears have sluggers up and down the lineup, leading DII baseball with 55 home runs which helps them land in the top 5 with 277 runs scored. Mackenzie Wainwright remains on the shortlist of most dominating players in DII (.477, 1.514 OPS, 10 doubles, 12 home runs, 36 RBIs and 14 stolen bases). This team is rolling.
No. 7 North Greenville | Previous: No. 2. It was a rough weekend for the Trailblazers, dropping a series to Barton. That's the second weekend series they've dropped in three weeks with a large one looming against Young Harris. Still, the way this team manufactures runs is impressive and they still look very tough and battle-tested. A series loss to Young Harris this weekend will make it hard to stick in the top 15, so it is a major series to watch.
No. 8 UT Tyler| Previous: No. 5 (tied). The Patriots were red-hot but ran into a tough Southern Arkansas team in a midweek loss and then dropped the series to Eastern New Mexico. Still, this team has played 24 of its 28 games against teams with a winning record and sits at 20-8 with the second toughest SoS in DII. Since Drew Schmidt saw his 20-game hitting streak end, he has started a new one, now at seven games with four multi-hit performances along the way.
No. 9 West Chester | Previous: 10. Last week, I commented that West Chester stuck in the top 10 despite having lesser metrics than some PSAC counterparts because of its impressive road start. Well, the Golden Rams finally played some home games and went 5-0, winning those games by a score of 45-7. The lineup is doing just fine, hitting a combined .325, but the pitching has been impressive. Kyle Lazer and Julian Costa lead a staff with a 2.95 ERA and 134 strikeouts in 125 innings pitched.
No. 10 (tie) East Stroudsburg, Florida Southern| Previous: First five out, both. The Warriors took a series from East Region powerhouse Southern New Hampshire this past weekend which really showed their mettle. The pitching in the PSAC has been unreal thus far, and East Stroudsburg is right there, second in DII with a 2.57 ERA, a 1.37 WHIP and a 14-3 record. Florida Southern jumps back into the Power 10 party when you consider this team is 11-4 against teams with a winning record in just 33 total games. The Mocs have a trio of hitters in Grant Thoroman, Rohsean Riley and Mikey Scott tearing the cover off the ball and lighting up the base paths and Sachem Ramos has been impressive leading this rotation.
First five out (in alphabetical order)
- Delta State. The Statesmen are another team that has played a tough SoS and have signature wins to show for it. The GSC is going to be a fun battle between DSU and West Florida.
- Millersville. The difference between teams ranked 7-16 is so narrow that if anyone slips up this week, Millersville is in the Power 10. The Marauders are on a six-game winning streak since dropping that series to Concord.
- Minnesota State. The Mavericks are 13-1 and outscoring their opponents 141-47. Once their SoS jumps up a little, they are Power 10 bound.
- Point Loma. Despite that series loss to Westmont, this is still the second-best team in the West Region and have some of the best metrics in DII. The Sea Lions also have Jake Entrekin launching baseballs into outer space.
- West Florida. The Argos have played a ridiculously tough schedule, but have a series win against a rising Rollins club, fellow first-five-outter Delta State and split with North Georgia. They are showing they can play with anyone in their part of the country.
Just missed: Augustana (SD), Mount Olive, Seton Hill, SNHU
