by our College Data Analytics Team
Choosing a college as a student athlete means weighing both the classroom and the competition. This list ranks 24 programs for Men’s Baseball (Division III) in Plains States by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
To arm you with the information you need, College Factual scores each program on a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and aid per athlete from the EADA survey), and overall school quality, drawing on NCAA, U.S. Department of Education EADA, and IPEDS data. Learn more about our ranking methodology.
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Here are the top-ranked colleges for student athletes:
Leading the list is Washington University in St Louis, our #1 college for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Located in St. Louis, MO, Washington University in St Louis is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $12,316 per participant, against $11,335 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Macalester College landed the #2 spot for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Macalester College is a private not-for-profit school based in Saint Paul, MN. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $9,784, compared with $9,101 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Grinnell College came in at #3 on this year's ranking for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Located in Grinnell, IA, Grinnell College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $6,407 in revenue per athlete, compared with $6,407 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
St Olaf College ranked #4 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Based in Northfield, MN, St Olaf College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,408, with expenses of about $6,842 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Carleton College landed the #5 spot for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Located in Northfield, MN, Carleton College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $3,649 in revenue per athlete, compared with $3,649 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota did well this year, earning the #6 position. Based in Winona, MN, Saint Mary's University of Minnesota is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $7,132, with expenses of about $7,132 per participant. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Luther College placed #7 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Based in Decorah, IA, Luther College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $5,374 per participant, compared with $5,300 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Gustavus Adolphus College came in at #8 in this year's ranking. Located in Saint Peter, MN, Gustavus Adolphus College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $4,534 in revenue per athlete, compared with $4,534 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Martin Luther College landed the #9 spot this year. Based in New Ulm, MN, Martin Luther College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $5,314 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $5,314 per participant. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Cornell College came in at #10 in this year's ranking. Located in Mount Vernon, IA, Cornell College is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $5,632, against $4,434 in expenses. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Webster University came in at #11 in this year's ranking. Located in Saint Louis, MO, Webster University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $11,838 in revenue per athlete, against $10,171 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
Nebraska Wesleyan University ranked #12 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Nebraska Wesleyan University is a private not-for-profit school based in Lincoln, NE. The program generates about $3,901 in revenue per athlete, compared with $3,877 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Loras College ranked #13 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Located in Dubuque, IA, Loras College is a private not-for-profit institution. Team revenue averages $3,788 per participant, compared with $3,788 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Wartburg College did well this year, earning the #14 position. Wartburg College is a private not-for-profit school based in Waverly, IA. The program generates about $4,651 in revenue per athlete, compared with $4,651 spent per athlete. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Hamline University landed the #15 spot this year. Hamline University is a private not-for-profit school based in Saint Paul, MN. Team revenue averages $8,085 per participant, against $8,085 in expenses. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
University of Minnesota-Morris ranked #16 on our 2026 list for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Based in Morris, MN, University of Minnesota-Morris is a public institution. Team revenue averages $5,674 per participant, against $5,646 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
North Central University came in at #17 in this year's ranking. This private not-for-profit school is set in Minneapolis, MN. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $5,640, against $5,640 in expenses. The school awards about $49 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Northwestern-St Paul did well this year, earning the #18 position. Based in Saint Paul, MN, University of Northwestern-St Paul is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $2,786, compared with $2,786 spent per athlete. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Simpson College landed the #19 spot this year. Simpson College is a private not-for-profit school based in Indianola, IA. The program generates about $3,279 in revenue per athlete, against $4,037 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Buena Vista University did well this year, earning the #20 position. Located in Storm Lake, IA, Buena Vista University is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $6,792 in revenue per athlete, with expenses of about $6,493 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
Bethany Lutheran College did well this year, earning the #21 position. Bethany Lutheran College is a private not-for-profit school based in Mankato, MN. Team revenue averages $6,175 per participant, against $6,209 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Augsburg University landed the #22 spot this year. Based in Minneapolis, MN, Augsburg University is a private not-for-profit institution. Per-participant team revenue is roughly $5,097, with expenses of about $5,097 per participant. Per-athlete athletic aid is roughly $0.
University of Dubuque landed the #23 spot this year. This private not-for-profit school is set in Dubuque, IA. Team revenue averages $6,419 per participant, against $6,228 in expenses. The school awards about $0 in athletic aid per athlete.
Coe College placed #24 among the best colleges for Men's Baseball (Division III) in Plains States. Based in Cedar Rapids, IA, Coe College is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $2,881 in revenue per athlete, compared with $2,881 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $0 per athlete.
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This list is compiled by College Factual, 2026 edition. The methodology weighs a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and athletic aid from the federal EADA survey), and overall school quality. The current methodology measures academic-athletic quality and does not include team win/loss performance.
References
See our data sources and methodologies.