Welcome to another college baseball Friday.
Today's slate features some solid conference matchups, and I'm eyeing 2 in particular: Oklahoma State vs. Texas Tech in the Big 12 and Texas A&M vs. Florida in the SEC.
Let's dive into my college baseball picks and NCAA baseball predictions for the games on Friday, April 24.
College Baseball Picks, Predictions
The team logos in the table below represent each of the matchups that Action Network's Road to CFB is targeting from Friday's slate of NCAA baseball games. Click on the team logos for any of the matchups below to navigate to a specific bet discussed in this article.
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 2 p.m. | |
  | 6:30 p.m. | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NCAAF Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Oklahoma State vs Texas Tech Pick
Despite a record over .500, Texas Tech isn’t a very good baseball team. The program has fully tanked under Tim Tadlock, whose stay in Lubbock might be growing old. The focus has shifted to football, basketball and softball — away from baseball.
Pitching is a significant issue for the Red Raiders — their 6.16 xFIP ranks 164th nationally — and it’s a thin unit with few great starting options.
This season, Texas Tech has tried to offset the subpar arms with one of the most dangerous lineups in the country. As a team, Tech bats over .350, second to only Georgia Tech, and put forth a 133 wRC+ (seventh-best nationally).
It’s also a team that’s 4-14 against Quad 1 and 2 competition.
While Oklahoma State is only 5-12 against Quad 1 opponents, it has played a much tougher schedule with a strength of schedule of 42 compared to Tech’s 92. That's particularly true in the nonconference.
The Cowboys' pitching staff is far superior (57th in xFIP) and, though the bullpen isn’t outstanding, they boast more quality relievers than Tech’s staff.
Oklahoma State goes big at the plate; its 89 home runs are second only to Georgia despite a .271 team average (161st). But this tells us Oklahoma State can play the shootout game and has a more dependable pitching staff.
This line opened up at about -113 on each side. Oklahoma State is the superior team, though I’d like to see more innings from Friday starter Ethan Lund.
Pick: Oklahoma State ML -120
| |
Texas A&M vs Florida Pick
At the turn of April, Florida head coach Kevin O’Sullivan made a change. Sophomore Aidan King took over for a struggling Liam Peterson, who was inconsistent with his control despite entering the season as one of the top arms in the country.
King threw seven shutout innings and walked no batters in a 2-0 Saturday win over Ole Miss before taking over Friday nights.
The righty won both of his Game 1 starts against Georgia and Auburn while striking out 55 batters and walking only 13 in 52 2/3 innings this season. The bottom line is that King is a difference-maker.
Texas A&M comes to Gainesville riding a six-game win streak that includes 2-0 and 3-0 sweeps of Texas and LSU, respectively.
Junior Shane Sdao makes his 11th start of the season, but he has been far from the best arm on the A&M staff. He has allowed opponents to bat .288 and issued walks on over 20% of at-bats, both worst among the weekend rotation.
Despite 14 losses, Florida still checks in 11th in RPI. The Gators hold an impressive 12-8 record against Quad 1 competition — 12 wins being the second-most nationally — but also six unfocused losses against Quad 2-4 teams.
They’re a team that’s played up to and down to competition this season.
Even if A&M takes this series, Florida’s best chance to win comes tonight with a significant pitching advantage at home.
Pick: Florida ML +130
