DII Report: The first Field of 56 for 2023 DII baseball

What will the DII baseball bracket look like come May? Let's start projecting that now.

Welcome to the first Field of 56 of 2023. For those newer to DII baseball, you’re probably asking: What the hell is he talking about?

The DII baseball championship tournament is, like DII basketball, a battle of eight regions, with each regional champion battling for a spot in Cary, NC. However, since baseball is a different beast, there are only 56 teams in the bracket, unlike basketball’s 64 (or 68 if you like those lame-os in DI).

Hence, the Field of 56. Now, each year certain regions can differ in number, rotating from an eight-team field to a seven-team field. Those changes are based on membership numbers, so if new teams join DII or a conference disbands baseball (as the CIAA did a few years back), a region has to accommodate. That makes things confusing, but if you followed my Field of 56 projections last year, there were NO changes in 2023.

Lastly, this is not necessarily bracketology. What do I mean by that? The DII baseball bracket, like all DII sports, is built on pre-determined metrics and filled by the selection committee based on those. This certainly takes those metrics (in-region play, strength of schedule, wins against ranked opponents for example) into consideration but it doesn’t base it solely on that. This is more of a projection of how the field will look come May, not necessarily complying with how it looks metrically right now.

Before you jump in, you may want to check out my latest Power 10 rankings. These are the first since the preseason and came out today. You can catch them every Wednesday morning on NCAA.com moving forward. READ THE LATEST HERE.

Enjoy (and PLEASE consider supporting the DII Report financially HERE)!

The first Field of 56 for 2023 (Number = Number of teams in the bracket from each region)

Atlantic (7)

1. Millersville

2. East Stroudsburg

3. West Chester

4. Seton Hill

5. Cal (PA)

6. Slippery Rock

7. Mercyhurst

First out: Charleston (WV)

East (7)

1. SNHU

2. Franklin Pierce

3. Molloy

4. Southern Connecticut

5. Wilmington (DE)

6. Le Moyne

7. New Haven

First out: St. Thomas Aquinas

Central (8)

1. Southern Arkansas

2. Central Oklahoma

3. Arkansas Tech

4. Minnesota State

5. Missouri Southern State

6. Central Missouri

7. Augustana (SD)

8. Henderson State

First out: St. Cloud State

Midwest (7)

1. Illinois-Springfield

2. Quincy

3. Drury

4. UIndy

5. Ashland

6. Wayne State (MI)

7. Northwood

First out: Missouri S&T

South (8)

1. Tampa

2. Montevallo

3. Valdosta State

4. West Georgia

5. Florida Southern

6. Rollins

7. Albany State

8. West Florida

First out: Lee, Embry-Riddle (right now this is VERY close for me)

South Central (6)

1. Angelo State

2. MSU Denver

3. St. Edward’s

4. UT Tyler

5. Colorado Mesa

6. West Texas A&M

First out: Lubbock Christian (this region is so unfair with only six entries making it and soooo many good teams. Texas A&M-Kingsville is very strong early, so don’t sleep on the Javs).

Southeast (7)

1. North Greenville

2. Columbus State

3. Lenoir-Rhyne

4. Mount Olive

5. Wingate

6. UNC Pembroke

7. Newberry

First out: Belmont Abbey

West (6)

1. Point Loma

2. Cal State San Bernardino

3. Hawaii Hilo

4. Cal Poly Pomona

5. Azusa Pacific

6. Northwest Nazarene

First out: Cal State Monterey Bay (another very tough region, especially when you add in there are THREE conference champions getting in with an automatic bid, thus knocking a very deserving team. Watch out for Chico State and possible surprises from Stanislaus State and Sonoma State.)