College World Series: Best bets for Coastal Carolina vs Arizona, Louisville vs Oregon St

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College World Series: Best bets for Coastal Carolina vs Arizona, Louisville vs Oregon St
The College World Series kicks off in Omaha on Friday. The action begins with Coastal Carolina facing Arizona at 1 p.m. CT. Later, Oregon State takes on Louisville at 6 p.m. CT. Play in Bracket 2 won't start until Saturday, where UCLA faces Murray State and LSU meets Arkansas.
Arkansas and LSU are considered the best two teams in the field. Both are stacked with MLB talent. Both squads are battle-tested, too, after playing through the grind of an SEC schedule. It would be a major upset if UCLA or Murray State found a way to win Bracket 2.
Coastal Carolina and Oregon State make up the next tier. The Chanticleers and Beavers are seen as serious contenders in Bracket 1, while Arizona and Louisville are long shots.
Baseball is a weird game, especially in the postseason. It's a fool's game to make predictions, but that's what we're going to do today.
Here are your best bets for Friday's action at the College World Series.
Coastal Carolina vs. Arizona U9 -115
Depending on where you look, you might see 8.5 as the total for this one. DraftKings still has it at nine runs with -115 odds. Charles Schwab can be hitter or pitcher friendly depending on the weather. The forecast on Friday isn't calling for a major breeze, so I don't expect the ball to be jumping out of the park.
Coastal Carolina's pitching staff is one of the best in the country. It's a bad matchup for an Arizona lineup that ranked near the bottom of the Big 12 in runs per game. However, Arizona has the pitching and defense to compete. I don't see a lot of runs scored in this one.
Pick: Under 9, -115
Oregon State -188 vs. Louisville
Oregon State's moneyline sits between -185 and -200 as of Friday morning. You can find -188 at DraftKings.
The Beavers will start freshman pitcher Dax Whitney. Whitney's stuff is electric with 111 strikeouts in 71.1 innings. He's posted double-digit K's in his last two NCAA Tournament outings. With Whitney on the mound, I like Oregon State's chances vs. Louisville.
Pick: Oregon State moneyline, -188
Oregon State -1.5 vs. Louisville
Along with Whitney on the mound, I feel good about Oregon State's lineup in this one. I have questions about Louisville's pitching staff, and the Beavers' lineup has MLB-level talent. Even if Louisville starter Patrick Forbes has a strong outing, Oregon State will get to the Louisville bullpen. You can find Oregon State -1.5 for +100 at BetMGM.
Pick: Oregon State -1.5, +100
For those unfamiliar with the College World Series, here's a refresher on how the tournament works.
How many teams are in the College World Series?
Eight teams compete in the College World Series. Before reaching Omaha, teams must win a four-team double-elimination regional and a best-of-three super regional.
Is the College World Series single elimination?
No. The College World Series has two double-elimination brackets, much like the setup used in the regional round. A single loss is not the end of the world.
How is the College World Series champion crowned?
The winners of each four-team bracket meet in the College World Series final, which is a best-of-three series. A team could lose twice and still win it all. A loss in the opening bracket doesn't carry over to the final.
2025 College World Series teams
Here are the eight teams set to compete in Omaha:
Arkansas
LSU
UCLA
Murray State
Coastal Carolina
Arizona
Oregon State
Louisville
2025 College World Series bracket
Bracket 1
Bracket 1 features Coastal Carolina, Arizona, Oregon State, and Louisville. CCU vs. Arizona and Oregon State vs. Louisville are the first-round games.
Bracket 2
Bracket 2 features UCLA, Murray State, Arkansas, and LSU. The first round games are UCLA vs. Murray State and LSU vs. Arkansas.
2025 College World Series Schedule