All sixteen Atlantic Coast Conference baseball teams will descend on Durham, N.C, this week, with an automatic bid going to the winner of the single-elimination tournament.
The tournament begins Tuesday at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, the home of the Triple-A International League’s Durham Bulls, with the bottom eight teams in the regular season standings facing off in a quadruple header. A full schedule for each day of the tournament is at the bottom of this post.
No. 1 Seed – Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (39-16 ACC, 19-11 Overall)
Head Coach – Danny Hall, 32nd Season (1,242-673-1 at Georgia Tech, 1,450-790-1 Career)
MLB Draft Prospects (MLB.com Ranking) – SS Kyle Lodise (No. 71)
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) – 20
Outlook – Georgia Tech has a pair of Golden Spikes award semifinalists in centerfielder Drew Burress and shortstop Kyle Lodise, and have strung together a spectacular season to earn the No. 1 seed. Expect Mason Patel or Brady Jones to start in the quarterfinals and semifinals, with Jaylen Paden (1.71 ERA) likely getting the ball in the title game should the Yellow Jackets get there.
No. 2 Seed – Florida State Seminoles (37-13 ACC, 17-10 Overall)
Head Coach – Link Jarrett, Third Season (109-61 Florida State, 410-259 Career)
MLB Draft Prospects (MLB.com Ranking) – LHP Jamie Arnold (No. 3), SS Alex Lodise (No. 53), OF Max Williams (No. 73), RHP Cam Leiter (No. 80), 2B Drew Faurot (No. 140)
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) – 14
Outlook – A big series win against North Carolina got the Seminoles the No. 2 seed and a double bye. Florida State is exceptionally talented, with Alex Lodise carrying a .422/.483/.772 batting line into the tournament, while Jamie Arnold, possibly the best draft eligible lefty, has a 2.59 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP.
No. 3 Seed – North Carolina Tar Heels (39-12 ACC, 18-11 Overall)
Head Coach – Scott Forbes, Fifth Season (193-101 Career)
MLB Draft Prospects (MLB.com Ranking) – C Luke Stevenson (No. 19), OF Kane Kepley (No. 94)
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) – 7
Outlook – Scott Forbes may have his best team since taking over the Tar Heels, led by Jake Knapp, a 6-foot-5, 270-pound righty who’s the first Golden Spikes semifinalist in Chapel Hill since 2017. The grad student has gone 11-0, throwing 80.0 innings with 74 strikeouts and just 13 walks. His 2.14 ERA is the conference best. The Tar Heels have outscored their opposition 388-201, and can win with pitching or hitting.
No. 4 Seed – North Carolina State Wolfpack (33-18 ACC, 17-11 Overall)
Head Coach – Elliott Avent, 29th Season (1,069-633 N.C. State, 1,293-829 Career)
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) – 34
Outlook – The Wolfpack come in to the ACC tourney as the No. 4 seed after losing two of three at home against Stanford last weekend. With four 40-RBI hitters in the lineup, N.C. State has offense, but the question remains as to whether their pitching will be enough to carry them through, as their three main starters all have ERA’s above 3.50.
No. 5 Seed – Clemson Tigers (41-15 ACC, 18-12 Overall)
Head Coach – Erik Bakich, Third Season (129-50 Clemson, 527-364 Career)
MLB Draft Prospects (MLB.com Ranking) – OF Cam Cannarella (No. 38)
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) – 10
Outlook – Clemson scores runs in bunches, with a +90 run differential and eight players in the lineup with at least 30 RBIs. Cam Cannarella leads the team in hitting with a .332/.473/.948 line. Aidan Knaak’s ERA may be above 4.00, but he has also notched 100 strikeouts this year against just 28 walks. If they put it all together, this team could make a deep run in the NCAA tournament.
No. 6 Seed – Virginia Cavaliers (16-11 ACC, 32-17 Overall)
Head Coach – Brian O’Connor, 22nd Season (898-378 Career)
MLB Draft Prospects (MLB.com Ranking) – 2B Henry Godbout (No. 67), OF/1B Henry Ford (No. 68)
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) – 55
Outlook – With five hitters batting over .300 and slugging over .500, the Cavaliers bats are to be feared. Like N.C. State, however, the pitching is the biggest question. The team ERA of 4.63 is less than spectacular, and the Cavaliers don’t have a regular starter with an ERA under 4.00.
No. 7 Seed – Duke Blue Devils (17-13 ACC, 36-18 Overall)
Head Coach – Chris Pollard, (415-292 Duke, 800-610-2 Career)
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) – 31
Outlook – Jake Hyde (11 HR, 60 RBIs) and Ben Miller (18 HR, 60 RBIs) pace the team offensively, and Reid Easterley is a workhorse on the mound, throwing 60 1/3 innings out of the bullpen with a 3.28 ERA. With a +167 run differential this season, the Blue Devils have plenty of offensive potential.
No. 8 Seed – Wake Forest Demon Deacons (16-14 ACC, 36-19 Overall)
Head Coach – Tom Walter, 16th Season (492-380-1 Wake Forest, 918-708-1 Career)
MLB Draft Prospects (MLB.com Ranking) – SS Marek Houston (No. 12), OF Ethan Conrad (No. 27)
Rating Percentage Index (RPI) – 25
Outlook – Kade Lewis is hitting .395 with 11 homers, 57 RBIs, and an OPS 0f 1.138, numbers that indicate he might be the best player in the conference. While Rhett Lowder is long gone, Blake Morningstar (73 IP, 2.71 ERA) gives the Deacs a chance every time he’s on the mound, and he could pitch twice in the tournament should Wake Forest make the final.