Baseball Game Preview: East Burke Cavaliers vs. Maiden Blue Devils

The East Burke Cavaliers will face off against the Maiden Blue Devils at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. East Burke's pitching crew has only allowed 3.5 runs per game this season, so Maiden's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

East Burke's usually-dominant pitching crew will be looking to make up for Friday's struggle, when West Lincoln hitters got past them. East Burke came up short against West Lincoln on Friday, falling 11-0. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last six times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Maiden). They were the clear victors by a 23-4 margin over Lincolnton on Friday. The Blue Devils haven't had any issues with the Wolves recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive win against them.

Brycen James was a standout: he scored five runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-4. Maiden is 3-1 when James posts two or more runs, but 3-5 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Brock Artavia, who scored four runs and stole a base while going 3-for-3.

Maiden was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .424. The last time their batting average was this high was back in April of 2024.

Maiden's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-6. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.0 runs over those games. As for East Burke, their loss dropped their record down to 6-4.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. East Burke has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Maiden struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.5 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.