When Does The 2026 College Baseball Season Start?

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(Photo by Andy Altenburger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

With the calendar turned to a new year and college baseball’s preseason runway officially extended by the NCAA, the 2026 season is coming into focus.

Division I players are set to return to campus for preseason practices, which now begin 35 days before the start of competition in what is a significant expansion from the previous 21-day window. Preseason Division I rankings will soon follow, with non-Division I opening days arriving shortly thereafter.

As the sport moves toward first pitch, here is a closer look at key dates across Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA and the NJCAA, along with one defining note for each level.

Division I 

Opening Day: Feb. 13

Division I Regionals: May 29-June 1

Division I Super Regionals: June 5-8

College World Series Opening Day: June 12

Championship Series: June 20-22

Championship Series Location: Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska

Fun Fact: In 2025, 30 of the 35 at-large tournament bids went to teams from the SEC (12), ACC (eight), Big 12 (seven) and Big Ten (three). Independent Oregon State also locked up an at-large berth. It left just four at-large tournament spots for mid-majors, the fewest since the NCAA adopted the 64-team super regional format in 1999. Still, six conferences and an independent were represented in the College World Series with LSU and Arkansas (SEC), Louisville (ACC), Arizona (Big 12), UCLA (Big Ten), Coastal Carolina (Sun Belt), Murray State (Missouri Valley) and Oregon State (independent) in the field. Murray State’s run marked just the fourth-ever Omaha appearance from a regional-round No. 4 seed. 

Division II

Opening Day: Jan. 30

Division II Regionals: May 14-17

Division II Super Regionals: May 21-23

Division II World Series: May 29-June 6

Championship Series Location: USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina

Fun Fact: Tampa has established itself as a Division II dynasty under coach Joe Urso, who captured his seventh national championship in 2025, the most by any active NCAA baseball coach at any level. The Spartans’ 2025 title was the 10th in program history, moving Tampa past Florida Southern and into sole possession of the most championships all-time. Tampa enters 2026 with its sights set on a third consecutive national title, a feat no Division II program has ever achieved.

Division III

Opening Days: Feb. 15-28

Division III Regionals: May 14-17

Division III Super Regionals: May 22-24

Division III World Series: May 29-June 4

Championship Series Location: Classic Park in Eastlake, Ohio

Fun Fact: Thirteen players with Division III ties heard their names called in the 2025 MLB Draft, including two who were selected directly out of Division III programs: MIT righthander Mason Estrada, a seventh-round pick by the Dodgers, and Kean lefthander Jason Gilman, who went in the 16th round to the Red Sox. The Division III level has become increasingly prolific in recent years as a talent pipeline for Division I recruiting, including at the highest levels of college baseball in the SEC. Former Endicott standout and Northeastern lefthander Jordan Gottesman was the highest-selected player with Division III experience in this year’s draft, going in the sixth round to the Giants after helping the Huskies to a 49-win season and regional appearance.

NAIA

Opening Days: Jan. 23-30

NAIA Championship Opening Round: May 7-10

NAIA World Series: May 22-30

Championship Series Location: Harris Field at Ed Cheff Stadium in Lewiston, Idaho

Fun Fact: Jay Johnson’s LSU Tigers were not the only program from the state of Louisiana to visit the nation’s capital this offseason following a championship campaign in 2025. They were joined by coach Brad Neffendorf and his LSU-Shreveport Pilots, who authored one of the most remarkable seasons in baseball history, regardless of level. The Pilots completed a perfect season in 2025, winning all 59 of their games en route to the program’s first national championship. They enter their first title defense viewed widely as favorites and will look to become the NAIA’s first repeat champion since the Lewis-Clark State Warriors completed a three-peat from 2015-17.

NJCAA

NJCAA Division I World Series: May 23-30

NJCAA Division II World Series: May 23-30

NJCAA Division III World Series: May 23-28

Fun Fact: College baseball’s most often overlooked level can, at times, produce some of the game’s best talent. Junior college alums who make the jump to Division I frequently hear their names called early in the MLB Draft like 2025 Red Sox first-rounders Kyson Witherspoon and Marcus Phillips. Junior college has also become an increasingly popular recruiting ground for Division I programs seeking to offset resource gaps in a constantly evolving college baseball landscape. Programs like Kansas have realized significant success relative to their baseball history by leaning heavily into the junior college pipeline, building older and more physically mature rosters while avoiding the steep price tags that can accompany Division I transfers.