UCLA Baseball Top-Five in Big Ten Preseason Poll

High expectations are surrounding UCLA baseball going into its first season in the Big Ten.

Jun 24, 2013; Omaha, NE, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach John Savage (22) looks on in the dugout before game 1 of the College World Series finals against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at TD Ameritrade Park. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Thorson-Imagn Images | Bruce Thorson-Imagn Images

UCLA baseball is a bit over 48 hours away from kicking off its 2025 season, and it's expected to be a good one.

The Bruins, who come off a 19-33 2024 campaign, are anticipated to improve mightily in their first season in the Big Ten.

The Big Ten released its Baseball Preseason Poll on Wednesday. UCLA was ranked fourth.

Sophomore shortstop Roch Cholowsky, junior right-handed pitcher Cody Delvecchio and sophomore outfielder Dean West were named to the Big Ten Players to Watch List.

UCLA's fellow Big Ten newcomer, Oregon, was ranked No. 1. The Ducks finished 40-20 last season and made it all the way to the Super Regionals round of the NCAA Tournament, where they fell to No. 1-seeded Texas A&M, which was bested by Tennessee in the title series.

The following are the top-six spots in the preseason poll:

1. Oregon

2. Nebraska

3. Indiana

4. UCLA

5. Michigan

6. USC

UCLA's season will start its season at Jackie Robinson Stadium on Friday in what will be the first of a three-game home series against Cal Poly. Friday's contest is set for 5 p.m. PST, with Saturday set for 2 p.m. and Sunday for 1 p.m.

The Bruins will then host BYU on Tuesday before heading out to Corpus Christie, Texas for the Kleberg Bank Classic, where they will face Texas A&M-Corpus Christie, Washington State and Michigan State.

UCLA will then host Arizona State for a two-game series on Feb. 25 and 26. That will come before its participation in the Southern California College Football Classic, which it will host. It will take on Vanderbilt, UConn and USC.

The following is the Bruins' conference schedule:

March 4: Michigan (Home)

March 7-9: Maryland (Away)

March 14-16: Nebraska (Home)

March 21-23: Indiana (Home)

March 28-30: Purdue (Away)

April 11-13: Washington (Home)

April 18-20: Oregon (Away)

April 25-27: Penn State (Home)

May 2-May 4: USC (Away)

May 9-May 11: Illinois (Away)

May 15-17: Northwestern (Home)

UCLA hasn't finished above .500 in conference play since the 2022 season, the last time it made it to the NCAA Tournament. It will look to make a statement in its first season in the Big Ten.

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