Vanderbilt Commodores second baseman Tyler Campbell (2) fields a ground ball during the fifth inning against the Virginia Cavaliers in game three of the College World Series Finals at TD Ameritrade Park. (Photo: Bruce Thorson, USA TODAY Sports)
You’ve been playing catch and going to the batting cages since you were a little kid. The pitches got faster. The players got bigger. The fences got further away. And the game got more and more serious.
It’s time to think of your future in baseball. Where will it take you? Around the country? Around the world? It can certainly take you to college. If you never get called up from the farm system, you need an education. Your baseball scholarship can provide you with a great degree.
College Factual is here to help. We ranked the best baseball programs in the nation by athletic competitiveness, academic quality, return on investment and leadership. View the whole ranking here, and learn more about our rankings methodology here.
1. Vanderbilt University
Tim Corbin has been head coach of the Commodores’ baseball program since 2003. His team lost to Florida State in the 2011 National Championship then won it all in 2014. In the last ten years, his teams have never had a GSR lower than 91% and have graduated 100% four times.
Vanderbilt is the #16 college in the nation and has an 8-to-1 student to faculty ratio. 74% of the school’s 23,000 employees work for the expansive University Medical Center.
2. Louisiana State University
LSU‘s 30,000 students occupy 2,000 acres on the banks of the Mississippi River. It is a land-grant, space-grant and sea-grant institution. The Troy H. Middleton Library holds nearly three million volumes including publications from the federal government.
Paul Mainieri has led Tiger baseball to the College World Series four times since 2008, winning it all in 2009. Over the years, 57 of his players have been drafted into Major League Baseball. He was inducted into the ABCA Hall of Fame in 2014.
3. University of Miami
Jim Morris set an NCAA record by reaching the College World Series in each of his first six seasons leading the Hurricanes. In 22 years, his teams have won the national championship twice. He has a perfect GSR for the last two years.
Miami has a student-to-faculty ratio of 12 to 1, which is exceptional for a student body of 15,000. Its library system holds over three million volumes including an expansive collection of Cuban heritage and music. Its most popular majors are psychology, nursing and biology.
4. Texas Christian University
TCU has 10,000 students and an endowment of $1.4 billion. The school is actively involved with organizations such as Amnesty International, Habitat for Humanity and Invisible Children. It ranks #5 among Texas colleges and has a 13-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio.
Jim Schlossnagle has coached the Horned Frogs since 2003, leading them to a .686 winning percentage. He was National Coach of the Year in 2010. His team was #1 in the Mountain West Conference every year from 2006 to 2012.
5. Rice University
Rice is the top-ranked college in Texas, with a student-to-faculty ratio of 9-to-1. The school excels at applied science programs relating to nanotechnology, artificial heart research, space science and structural chemical analysis.
Wayne Graham has recorded 1,076 wins in 24 seasons leading Owls’ baseball. His team has won 19 consecutive conference championships and won the NCAA championship in 2003. Only once in the past decade has Rice’s baseball team had a GSR of less than 90%.
6. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Established in 1867, the University of Illinois is a public research institution occupying a beautiful 4,552-acre campus that is renowned for its landscape and architecture. Illinois also has a solid reputation for both academic and athletic excellence. The school’s most popular majors are psychology and accounting.
Dan Hartleb has served as head coach for the Fighting Illini since 2006. He was named Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2015 after leading Illinois to win its first-ever Super Regional.
7. University of Southern California
Dan H ubbs is only the sixth USC baseball coach since 1930. He was a three-year letterman as a Trojan from 1991 to 1993 and ranks fourth on the career saves list with 22. He has been head coach for only three years but was a very successful pitching coach for the Cal Golden Bears from 2000 to 2011.
USC has very high ethnic diversity and ranks #6 among California colleges. Its student-to-faculty ratio is 9-to-1. The most popular majors at the school are business, communication and international relations.
8. Duke University
Duke is the #5 ranked college in the nation. Its endowment is $7 billion plus a third of the $3.4 billion independent Duke Endowment. It is a non-sectarian institution, but has symbolic and historic ties to the United Methodist Church. Its graduate schools of medicine and law are among the most desired in the country.
After eight seasons and 244 wins coaching Appalachian State, Chris Pollard came to Duke in 2013. His team reached the ACC tournament in his second year and tied a school record with 16 conference wins.
9. The University of Texas-Austin
Augie Garrido has amassed 1,950 wins in 46 years as the head of the Longhorns’ baseball program, making him the winningest coach in Division I baseball history. His teams have won five national titles. He has been NCAA coach of the year six times.
Texas is a large and bold university at the heart of the creative city of Austin. It is the #4 ranked college in the state. Its most popular majors are biology, advertising and economics.
10. Tulane University
Originally established as a public medical college, Tulane grew into a full-fledge university and was eventually privatized in 1884. With its impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 and its commitment to providing the highest quality education available, students from all across the nation compete for entrance to Tulane each year. The school’s most popular majors are finance, psychology and marketing.
Following Rick Jones’ retirement in 2014, David Pierce was brought on as head coach of the Tulane baseball program. His first year brought a fresh breath to the team as they advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2008.
