Gophers Baseball Projected to Finish Near Bottom of the Big Ten Again in 2026

Minnesota will need to outperform expectations in order to show improvement this season.

Gophers head coach Ty McDevitt. | Picture via: University of Minnesota Athletics

It might be hard to believe with the weather outside in Minnesota, but college baseball season is less than two weeks away. DraftKings Sportsbook has released futures betting odds, and the Gophers are projected to finish near the bottom of the conference again in 2026.

Gophers baseball opens their 2026 season next weekend against Stetson/St. John's (NY)/Ball State in Deland, Florida.

DraftKings Sportsbook gives Minnesota the 14th-best odds to win the Big Ten conference (+8000) in Year 2 of the Ty McDevitt era. pic.twitter.com/AIBaPBJ06Y

— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) February 4, 2026

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Minnesota has +8000 odds to win the conference in 2026, which means a $100 wager would net you $8,000 in return. That is tied for the 14th-best odds out of 17 teams, alongside Michigan State. Minnesota has +30000 odds to make the College World Series, which means a $100 wager would net you $30,000 in return.

The 2026 season will be Ty McDevitt's second as head coach of the Gophers after longtime skipper John Anderson retired after the 2024 season. They had a 24-28 record last season, failing to qualify for the postseason for the sixth consecutive full season.

The Gophers had a busy transfer portal cycle in the offseason, losing top players like outfielder Drew Berkland, LHP Noah Rooney and RHP Kyle Remington. They replaced them with plenty of intriguing talent such as North Dakota State infielder Davis Hamilton, Texas A&M RHP Isaac Morton and Belmont outfielder Ty Allen, among others.

There was once a time when the Gophers were the class of baseball in the Big Ten. They never finished below 9th in the final conference standings between 1962 and 2021. They finished below 5th place only four times from 1982 to 2021. Their last five finishes in the conference were 13th, 13th, 10th, 9th and 16th place.

There are reasons to think Minnesota could build upon its 24-28 record last season. The first regular season game is only two weeks away on Friday, Feb. 13, in Deland, Florida. The Gophers will open against Stetson, St. John's (NY) and Ball State before playing four games in Fort Myers, Florida, the following week.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.