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During college baseball season, Fridays are my favorite day of the week, not because it's the start of the weekend but because it's the start of college baseball weekend series across the country. For those new to watching college baseball, Friday is when the aces of each staff toe the rubber, hoping to start the weekend by providing their team with a win.
Those who have taken this journey with me the last year or so also know Fridays are when we make our money. This has, by far and away, been my most profitable day as a college baseball capper, and I have a feeling that's not going to change this season. If you want all my college baseball plays, I post all my bets in our Premium Discord daily. Use code CASEY to get 10% off any MLB Premium subscription, and you will also receive my daily bets.
This article will focus on money lines, run lines, totals, and often parlaying teams to get better odds. Not all books have college lines, so DraftKings Sportsbook and FanDuel Sportsbook will be my primary books. If you find a line in another book, feel free to use that as well. With no further adieu, here are my favorite bets for Friday, February 23, 2023.
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Today's College Baseball Betting Picks
Illinois @ #25 Coastal Carolina
Projected Starters - Fighting Illini: Jack Crowder | Chanticleers: Riley Eikhoff
Coastal will be hosting their second tournament in as many weekends starting this afternoon. Last weekend, The Chants struggled at the Battle of the Beach, dropping a pair of games to Duke and Indiana. Coastal got beaten by a gauntlet of two top-25 teams in weekend one but played decent baseball. Duke and Indiana played incredible baseball and scored two close victories to win the weekend. This weekend's path is much easier, and I expect the Chants to dominate.
Riley Eickhoff gets the rock today after twirling six hitless innings in his season debut against George Mason last weekend. Eickhoff posted a 4.43 ERA last season in 42 2/3 innings for the Chants. Used as a swingman in the past, this is his first crack at the weekend rotation, and if his performance last weekend indicated anything, he may be better suited to the rotation. He will pitch in the low 90s with a curveball that had a 41% Whiff last season.
As always, the key to Coastal's success this year depends on their offense. They were not disappointed last Friday as they scored 26 runs against George Mason in this park. They are led by two all-Americans on this side of the ball, both catchers, Caden Bodine and Derek Bender. Bodine slashed .366/.454/.606 with 11 HR and 47 RBI last season for the Chants, while Bender, who will DH, slashed .341/.399/.635 with 19 HR and 83 RBI.
Graham Brown is the third standout bat in the Chants lineup. Brown slashed .278/.377/.573 with 17 HR and 71 RBI last season. The trio will hit three, four, and five in the coastal lineup and make a heart of the order as good as anyone in the country.
Illinois will go with righty Jack Crowder, who struck out nine in six innings pitched, allowing one run in his debut in Winston-Salem last weekend against Akron. Crowder will sit 91-95 with a slider and change-up. He is a good arm who has struggled with command in the past but seemed to figure that issue out last weekend, throwing 63% strikes against Akron. With all due respect to the Zips, this Chants lineup is a different beast, and Crowder and this Illinois bullpen will have their work cut out for them.
Coastal is a -250 favorite on DraftKings and a -265 favorite on FanDuel. That is too much juice for me to lay, so there are several ways to get in the action with them. First is betting on their run line, which has yet to come out. I plan on doing this as long as it is -2.5 or lower. If we get to -3.5, depending on the juice, I plan on staying away. My favorite thing to do is to parlay them with two other favorites of mine at the same odds. Those two bets I have already placed are listed below.
Picks: Coastal Carolina Moneyline + Kentucky Moneyline (+100) DraftKings Sportsbook | Coastal Carolina Moneyline + Georgia Moneyline (-152) DraftKings Sportsbook
Today's College Baseball Betting Picks
#11 East Carolina @ #15 North Carolina
Projected Starters - Pirates: Trey Yesavage | Tar Heels: Folger Boaz
One of the top early collegiate baseball season series will take place this weekend between East Carolina and North Carolina. Today's game will take place in Chapel Hill, tomorrow in Fayetteville, home of the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, and the matinee on Sunday will take place in Greenville.
All-American and likely first-round draft pick Trey Yesavage will toe the rubber for the Pirates and is one of college baseball's elite arms. He will touch the upper 90s with his heater and has an elite slider. Nonetheless, Yesavage's biggest asset is his command. He pounds the zone, as he posted a 105-23 K-BB last season with a 2.61 ERA in 76 IP last season. Yesavage spent the summer with the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team and is a top-five starting pitcher in my power rankings.
His opposition will be blue-chip freshman Folger Boaz, who is ultra-talented in his own right. Boaz is a lefty who will run his heater in the low 90s and a devastating slider. He will throw a change-up but is more of a development pitch for him early in his career. Boaz went five innings, allowing five hits, one run, and five strikeouts in his collegiate debut against Wagner last weekend.
Although Boaz is a talented freshman and most certainly the future of North Carolina baseball, pitching on Fridays is a very tall task. Jake Knapp was the projected Friday guy and ace of the Tar Heel team before injury hit several weeks before the season, thrusting Boaz into the Friday role. This will be his first big test of many in his career at North Carolina.
The Tar Heels are a young team, as they have a ton of freshmen in prominent roles. This may not be a bad thing as the season progresses as that freshman class was the number three recruiting class in the country last season, but in a big test on the second weekend of the season, it is a question mark.
The Tar Heels are led by star outfielder and projected first-round pick Vance Honeycutt. Honeycutt slashed .257/.418/.492 with 12 HR, 43 RBI, and 19 SB a year ago. He has 37 career HR and 48 career SB and will undoubtedly be an all-American come year's end. He has already hit three home runs and has three stolen bases through four games this season.
The Pirates have six returners from last year's lineup and a ton of experience in the bullpen. The offense is led by Jacob Starling, who slashed .311/.436/.506 with 10 HR and 52 RBI last season. Catcher Justin Wilcoxen is the other anchor of this offense .318/.384/.538 with nine HR and 49 RBI a year ago.
Experience matters early in the season, especially in these marquee matchups. East Carolina owns that advantage on the mound, with the position player group, and in the bullpen. Because of that, I will be backing East Carolina today and in this series.
Pick: East Carolina Moneyline (+100) DraftKings Sportsbook
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Today's College Baseball Betting Picks
#2 Arkansas @ #7 Oregon State
Projected Starters - Razorbacks: Hagen Smith | Beavers: Aiden May
You know I couldn't leave you guys today without talking about the game of the weekend that will take place tonight at Globe Life Field between two top-ten-ranked teams. If you pick one game to watch tonight, this would be my recommendation; although you need a FloSports subscription, this game is well worth it.
Oregon State enters this contest en fuego with a 5-0 record and is clicking on all cylinders. Arkansas comes in 3-1 and scuffled a bit last weekend with a tough series against James Madison.
Arkansas sends ace Hagen Smith, a top-three arm in college baseball in my power rankings, to the mound. He's a lefty who will touch 100 mph on his heater and mix in a splitter and slider to go along with it. He went 8-2 last season with a 3.64 ERA and a 109-42 K-BB in 71 2/3 IP last season. He has two years of high-leverage experience to go along with it.
Smith did scuffle a bit on opening weekend, going one inning and allowing three runs and two walks. The leash has me concerned a bit here, and even if he is on, how deep will he pitch in this game?
Oregon State will send their ace, Aiden May, to the bump tonight. A transfer from Arizona, May will pitch in the mid-90s with his heater and showcase an elite slider. He posted a 6.33 ERA in 16 starts throughout his career for the Wildcats but was exceptional last weekend against New Mexico, going five and two-thirds inning pitching, allowing one run with four strikeouts.
Those in the premium discord with RotoBaller know my affection for Oregon State. I can tell you it is not because of the pitching staff. This is college baseball's best offense, which is why they are my favorite, along with Wake Forest to win a national title. This is a team of destiny with what happened in conference realignment and the Beavers getting the short end of the stick, having to play independently next year because of the Pac-12 demise.
Travis Bazzana is college baseball's premier hitter. He leads Oregon State offense and is my pick to win the Golden Spikes award and go number one overall to the Guardians. He slashed .374/.500/.622 with 11 HR, 55 RBI, and added 36 SB to go along with it. He is the ultimate igniter at the top of the order and sets the tone at the first pitch.
Freshman Trent Caraway, the highly touted recruit, has been on fire to start the season. He's batting .474 with three doubles, two home runs, and ten runs scored through his first five career games.
I am in love with this Oregon State team, and when I can get them at plus money in the middle of a hot streak, there is no way I won't back them.
Pick: Oregon State Moneyline (+100) DraftKings Sportsbook
Thank you for reading our College Baseball Bets saga. If you have any questions, you can message me or tweet me on Twitter @CaseyW22. Most games are accessible on ESPN+, but if you have trouble finding them, head to each team's athletics website, and you can follow the games on live stats or even sometimes free live streams. Make sure to sign up for a Premium MLB pass to access all college baseball bets. Good luck, RotoBallers!
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