The 2010 NCAA Division I baseball season play of
college baseball
College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...
in the United States, organized by the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
(NCAA) at the
Division I level, began on February 19, 2010. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the
2010 NCAA Division I baseball tournament and
2010 College World Series. The College World Series, which consisted of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA tournament, was held in its annual location of
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...
. It was the final College World Series held at Omaha's
Rosenblatt Stadium, which closed following the event. It concluded on June 30, 2010, with the final game of the best of three championship series.
South Carolina
South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
defeated
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
two games to none to claim their first championship, which was also South Carolina's first national championship in any men's sport.
Realignment
New programs
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
added a varsity intercollegiate baseball program for the 2010 season.
Dropped programs
Both
Northern Iowa and
Vermont
Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...
dropped their varsity intercollegiate baseball programs following the 2009 season.
Conference changes
Eight former
Division I independents formed the new
Great West Conference, whose champion would not qualify for the NCAA tournament. The eight schools that formed the conference were
Chicago State,
Houston Baptist,
NJIT,
North Dakota
North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...
,
Northern Colorado,
NYIT,
Texas–Pan American, and
Utah Valley.
The
Northeast Conference
The Northeast Conference (NEC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools are members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Teams in the NEC compete in Division I for all sports; football competes in the Division I Foo ...
added
Bryant, a former
Division II member that had been an independent in 2009.
The
Missouri Valley Conference
The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the fourth-oldest collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the Midwestern Unite ...
, which lost
Northern Iowa when it dropped its program, and the
America East Conference
The America East Conference (AmEast) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I whose members are located in the Northeastern United States. The conference is headquartered in Boston, Massachu ...
, which lost
Vermont
Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...
when it dropped its program, each lost one member.
Conference formats
The
Southland Conference
The Southland Conference (SLC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the South Central United States (specifically Texas and Louisiana). It participates in the NCAA's Division I for all sports; for football, it participates in ...
eliminated the divisional format it had used from 2008–2009.
Preseason
The
Texas Longhorns, defeated by LSU in the 2009 CWS championship series, entered the season ranked #1 in the major polls. Defending national champions
LSU
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...
received a #2 ranking in the preseason.
Conference standings
Rankings
The Pac-10 Conference champion
Arizona State Sun Devils (47–8) ended the regular season ranked #1 in the USA Today/ESPN poll while the
Virginia Cavaliers (47–11) finished #1 in the Baseball America poll. Preseason #1 Texas stumbled to an 0–3 Big 12 Tournament record to drop to #3 in both final polls. South Carolina finished the season as a unanimous #1 after winning its first College World Series.
Postseason
The 2010 NCAA Division I baseball tournament began on June 4, 2010. 64 teams qualified for the tournament. The following teams earned Top 8 National Seeds:
# Arizona State (47–8)
# Texas (46–11) — ''Eliminated in Super Regional''
# Florida (42–15)
# Coastal Carolina (51–7) — ''Eliminated in Super Regional''
# Virginia (47–11) — ''Eliminated in Super Regional''
# UCLA (43–13)
# Louisville (48–12) — ''Eliminated in Regional''
# Georgia Tech (45–13) — ''Eliminated in Regional''
Atlantic Sun Conference champions
Mercer earned their first appearance in the NCAA tournament while
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
earned their first appearance since 1962.
College World Series
The 2010 season marked the sixty fourth NCAA baseball tournament, which culminated with the eight team
College World Series
The College World Series (CWS), officially the NCAA Men's College World Series (MCWS), is a baseball tournament held each June in Omaha, Nebraska. It is the culmination of the NCAA Division I baseball tournament—featuring 64 teams in the ...
. The College World Series was held in
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...
, and for the last time was played at
Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium. The eight teams played a double-elimination format, with
South Carolina
South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
claiming their first championship with a two games to none series win over
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
in the final.
Bracket
Award winners
All-American teams
Major player of the year awards
*
Dick Howser Trophy:
Anthony Rendon
Anthony Michael Rendon (, ; born June 6, 1990) is an American baseball third baseman for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played for the Washington Nationals and was a member of the Nationals' 2019 World S ...
,
Rice
Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...
*
''Baseball America'':
Anthony Rendon
Anthony Michael Rendon (, ; born June 6, 1990) is an American baseball third baseman for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played for the Washington Nationals and was a member of the Nationals' 2019 World S ...
,
Rice
Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...
*
''Collegiate Baseball'':
Chris Sale,
Florida Gulf Coast
*
American Baseball Coaches Association
The American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) is the world's largest Amateur baseball in the United States, amateur baseball Manager (baseball), coaching organization. It was founded in 1945 as the American Association of College Baseball Coach ...
:
Anthony Rendon
Anthony Michael Rendon (, ; born June 6, 1990) is an American baseball third baseman for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played for the Washington Nationals and was a member of the Nationals' 2019 World S ...
,
Rice
Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...
*
Golden Spikes Award Bryce Harper,
Southern Nevada
Major coach of the year awards
*
American Baseball Coaches Association
The American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) is the world's largest Amateur baseball in the United States, amateur baseball Manager (baseball), coaching organization. It was founded in 1945 as the American Association of College Baseball Coach ...
:
Ray Tanner,
South Carolina
South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
*
''Baseball America'':
Ray Tanner,
South Carolina
South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
*
''Collegiate Baseball'' Coach of the Year:
Ray Tanner,
South Carolina
South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
Other major awards
*
Johnny Bench Award (Catcher of the Year):
Bryan Holaday,
TCU
*
''Baseball America'' Freshman Of The Year:
Matt Purke,
TCU
References
External links
NCAA-Baseball.comStandings
{{NCAA Division I baseball season navbox, state=autocollapse