Austin Regional Odds
 | Texas Longhorns | -700 |
 | UC Santa Barbara Gauchos | +650 |
 | Tarleton State Texans | +1400 |
 | Holy Cross Crusaders | +9000 |
Read Doug Ziefel's full college baseball betting preview for the 2026 NCAA Regionals here.
1. Texas Longhorns: My final preseason victory lap of this preview comes with the Texas Longhorns. I have the Longhorns in the pocket to win the College World Series at 15 to 1 when they enter the NCAA Tournament around 6 to 1.
Texas possesses one of the deepest pitching staffs in the country, as they not only have a bevy of quality starting options, but more than a few flamethrowers out of the bullpen to go along.
While the men on the mound are the backbone of the team, there is plenty of talent at the plate with Aiden Robbins and Carson Tinney leading the lineup that ranks 19th in wRC+.
The Longhorns got a fortunate draw, as they will roll in their opener and may even avoid Jackson Flora on Saturday as they cruise to a Super Regional.
2. UC Santa Barbara Gauchos: You cannot even begin to talk about UC Santa Barbara without mentioning Jackson Flora. Flora is the best arm in the country as he wiped out his opposition, pitching to a 1.05 ERA over 94 innings and striking out 33 percent of the hitters he faced.
While Flora headlines the staff, the Guachos were tremendous overall on the bump, ranking third in FIP and strikeout rate, and 12th in runs allowed per game.
Their elite pitching staff made the lineup's job easy. However, at this stage, their lack of run production will be their downfall.
UCSB ranks 214th in runs scored per game and 183rd in wRC+. That is not going to be good enough to get the job done against the Longhorns or perhaps even in their opening matchup against Tarleton State.
The biggest question is, when will we see Jackson Flora? I don’t think the Guachos can afford to pitch off and save him for a Saturday date with the Longhorns, as the next team in this region is plenty dangerous.
3. Tarleton State Texans: The Tarleton State Texans are making their first NCAA Division 1 Tournament appearance after winning both the regular season and conference tournament titles in the WAC.
The Texans come into this postseason with a ton of confidence and momentum as they have the bats to slug it out. They rank 66th in wRC+ and 64th in slugging percentage while averaging over seven runs per game.
Their pitching is the area of the club that is untested, but Ethan Wendel, Cort Lowery, and a bullpen with a collective ERA of 4.93 should be able to keep them close.
It’s clear the Texas are live in their opener against UCSB, especially if Flora is not on the mound fo the Gauchos.
4. Holy Cross Crusaders: The Crusaders are far from newcomers to the NCAA Tournament, as this will be their third appearance in five years.
However, their outlook in this regional is bleak. Their sub. 500 record against a schedule that ranked 250th is appalling.
This team is well below average across the board and is likely to get blown out in their first two games.
Austin Regional Picks
- Tarleton State ML +130 vs. UCSB (bet365)
- Texas Run Line -4.5 or Better vs. Holy Cross
