UC Santa Barbara has been picked to win The Big West, according to a poll of the conference’s 11 head coaches. It is the fourth year in a row that the Gauchos have been selected as the preseason favorites in February.
 
UC Santa Barbara earned five of the 11 first-place votes to total 95 points. The Gauchos have won three of the last six awarded Big West regular-season titles (2019, 2022, 2024) and have appeared in the NCAA Tournament four times (2019, 2021, 2022, 2024) during that span. In 2025, UC Santa Barbara tied for fourth in the league standings with a 16-14 conference mark, going 36-18 overall. The Gauchos qualified for The Big West Championship and were eliminated in the opening round. UC Santa Barbara is expected to compete nationally this season, coming in at No. 21 in Perfect Game’s preseason rankings and receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll.
 
The Big West coaches also voted on an 11-player preseason team and the Gauchos had a representative in junior right-handed pitcher Jackson Flora. A reigning All-Big West First Team member, Flora went 6-3 with a 3.60 ERA and 86 strikeouts over 75.0 innings in 2025.
 
Cal Poly came in second in the poll, receiving five first-place votes for 89 points. Last year, the Mustangs went overall 43-19 overall and finished second in the conference regular-season with a 23-7 mark. The Mustangs won the revived Big West Championship and earned the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
The Mustangs took two spots on the preseason team with junior third baseman Alejandro Garza and junior left-handed pitcher Griffin Naess. Garza is a two-time All-Big West First Team honoree and hit .351 with 54 RBI and 57 runs last year. Naess was Cal Poly’s ace in 2025, going 7-3 with a 3.41 ERA and 62 strikeouts in 95.0 innings of work.
 
The final remaining first-place vote went to UC Irvine, predicted for third in the poll with 86 points. The Anteaters are the reigning Big West regular-season champion with a 24-6 conference record, going 43-17 overall. UC Irvine was the runner-up in the 2025 Big West Baseball Championship but did well enough to receive an at-large bid to the national tournament. The Anteaters are receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll.
 
The Anteaters had two representatives on the Big West preseason team with junior right-handed pitcher Trevor Hansen and junior left-handed pitcher Ricky Ojeda. Both were All-Big West First Team selections in 2025. Hansen went 9-3 with a 3.30 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 95.1 innings. Ojeda was 13-1 with a 3.55 ERA and 83 strikeouts in 66.0 innings.  
 
Cal State Fullerton and Hawai‘i tied for fourth in the poll with 67 points. Last season, the Titans were third in the regular season after going 19-11 in league play, 29-27 overall, while the Rainbow Warriors were tied for fourth with a 16-14 conference mark and 35-21 overall. Cal State Fullerton is receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll.
 
Titan outfielder/first baseman Andrew Kirchner was named to the preseason team after hitting .301 with 12 home runs, 70 RBI and 38 runs en route to All-Big West Second Team honors in 2025.  
 
Hawai‘i had three on the preseason team with junior infielder Elijah Ickes, junior right-handed pitcher Isaiah Magdaleno and graduate outfielder/infielder Ben Zeigler-Namoa. Ickes batted .303 with six stolen bases, 21 RBI and 27 runs in limited action last year. Magdaleno went 4-1 with a 2.70 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 60.0 innings pitched for All-Big West First Team honors. Zeigler-Namoa was a 2025 All-Big West Second Team member with a .333 batting average, 54 runs and 41 RBI.
 
UC San Diego was selected to finish sixth with 60 points. The Tritons were sixth last season with a 15-15 league record, 26-25 overall. Senior infielder J.C. Allen and junior outfielder Michael Crossland earned spots on the preseason team. In 2025, Allen earned All-Big West First Team distinction hitting .304 with 14 home runs, 53 RBI and 56 runs. Crossland was also an All-Big West First Team selection last season with a .341 batting average, 15 home runs, six stolen bases, 44 RBI and 49 runs.
 
Long Beach State (41), UC Davis (40), CSUN (25), Cal State Bakersfield (22) and UC Riverside (13) round out the poll.
 
The 2026 Big West conference schedule consists of a 30-game slate, with each side facing all 10 opponents in three-game sets starting Friday, March 6. Check listings to see which contests air on ESPN+.
 
The Big West’s top five teams will advance to the 2026 Big West Baseball Championship, May 20-24 at UC Irvine’s Cicerone Field at Anteater Ballpark, with the winner earning an automatic berth in the NCAA Championship.