Florida State has been tabbed as the preseason favorites to win the ACC Baseball Championship, with 10 of 14 first place votes. Clemson, Louisville, North Carolina and NC State also nabbed one first place vote each for the overall conference title.
The Tar Heels were selected as the ACC Coastal Division preseason favorites, narrowly edging out Virginia and Miami (FL). Louisville finished second behind the Seminoles as the ACC Atlantic Division favorites.
The ACC as a whole continues its baseball dominance, with the most ranked teams (eight) across the D1baseball, Collegiate Baseball and Baseball America polls. Louisville enters the 2017 season ranked 7th in the Baseball America Top 25, 11th on Collegiate Baseball and 12th on D1baseball.com.
The Cardinals open their season on February 17th-19th in Clearwater, FL against Alabama State, Maryland and Ball State. The Cardinals open their home slate against in-state foe Eastern Kentucky on February 22nd, with a home game at Louisville Slugger Field on April 26th against another in-state foe, Northern Kentucky. U of L hopes to rebound from another crushing defeat in the Super Regionals and make their third College World Series in the last five years.
