Kansas baseball coach Dan Fitzgerald previews Big 12 tournament
Check out everything Kansas baseball coach Dan Fitzgerald had to say Monday as the Jayhawks continued to prepare for the Big 12 Conference tournament.
LAWRENCE — Kansas baseball won’t have to sweat much as it waits for the reveal of this year’s 2025 NCAA tournament field on Monday.
KU (43-15) might not have won a Big 12 Conference tournament title this past week in Arlington, Texas. Its stay there ended Friday with a semifinal loss against TCU. But coach Dan Fitzgerald’s squad is widely viewed as safely within the field of 64 due to what it showcased over the course of the regular season.
As long as there isn’t a jarring omission, Kansas will be making its first trip to an NCAA regional since 2014. KU will also be doing so in the third year of Fitzgerald’s rebuild, which began ahead of the 2023 season. There was also even momentum at times behind the Jayhawks potentially hosting a NCAA regional in 2025, although that momentum appeared to dissipate after the team’s Big 12 tournament exit.
“I think when you play the way that we have, it literally is about just being who we are and enjoying every second of it and trying to play baseball as long as we can together,” Fitzgerald said recently as he talked about what being in the postseason will be like. “But it’s incredibly fun, and I can’t wait for these guys to experience it.”
Kansas captured seven Big 12 series victories in the 10 opportunities it had this season, including five sweeps. One of those sweeps came just ahead of the Big 12 tournament, on the road against the Big 12 regular season champion West Virginia Mountaineers. Including the Big 12 tournament, 21 of the 43 wins KU has earned this year have come against Big 12 opponents.
Here is where the Jayhawks stand ahead of NCAA tournament selection.
Kansas baseball RPI
According to ncaa.com, for games through Saturday the RPI for Kansas rests at 24 with its 43-15 record. That places the Jayhawks second among Big 12 programs, behind TCU at No. 18 and just ahead of both Arizona and West Virginia at 27 and 28, respectively. Those four teams, although not in that order, were the top four seeds for the Big 12 tournament.
Kansas baseball NCAA tournament projections
D1Baseball’s latest update Sunday projects Kansas as a No. 2 seed in the Fayetteville, Arkansas regional hosted by No. 1-seed Arkansas. Elsewhere in the regional is No. 3-seed Creighton and No. 4-seed Little Rock. Of the No. 1 seeds to face in a regional, the Razorbacks would be ranked among the toughest.
Baseball America’s latest update Sunday projects Kansas as a No. 2 seed in the Knoxville, Tennessee regional hosted by No. 1-seed Tennessee. Elsewhere in the regional is No. 3-seed East Tennessee State and No. 4-seed Binghamton. Tennessee might not look as challenging as Arkansas at first glance, but both are quality Southeastern Conference programs.
NCAA baseball tournament schedule
- Selection show: Monday, May 26, 11 a.m. (CT)
- Regionals: May 30-June 2
- Super regionals: June 6-9
- College World Series: June 13-23
Where to watch NCAA baseball tournament selection
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He was the 2022 National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
