Baylor Bears Look to Continue Momentum Against Texas-Arlington Mavericks

ARLINGTON, Texas (Interstat) — The Baylor Bears, riding the arm of a resurgent ace, visit the Texas-Arlington Mavericks in a non-conference matchup Tuesday night at Clay Gould Ballpark.

First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. under clear skies with a game-time temperature of 72 degrees.

Baylor (18-13) enters having won two of three against BYU, capped by a 3-1 victory Saturday. The Bears will look to right-hander Ethan Calder (3-2, 4.15 ERA) to set the tone. Calder is coming off a dominant performance against the Cougars, allowing one earned run on six hits with nine strikeouts over six innings. His recent outings have been a mix of brilliance and struggle, including a seven-inning, no-hit effort at Houston on March 29 where he was charged with four unearned runs.

The Mavericks (13-17) took two of three from Tarleton State last weekend, including an 8-2 win Saturday powered by a grand slam from center fielder Xander McAfee. McAfee is a key bat in the UTA lineup, showing flashes of power with two home runs and eight RBIs in his last 10 games, though his production has been inconsistent.

Baylor’s bullpen was flawless in the series finale against BYU, with Caleb Bunch and RJ Ruais combining for three perfect innings of relief. The Bears’ offense will aim for a more consistent showing after scoring 19 runs in the first two games of that series before being held to three in the finale.

UTA will counter with a pitching staff that limited Tarleton State to two runs on Saturday behind a strong outing from reliever Merek Sears. The Mavericks have shown an ability to score in bunches, plating eight or more runs four times in March.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a high-scoring affair, favoring Baylor 7-6, while its ELO rating system gives the Bears a 66.2% probability to win.

Following this contest, Baylor opens a three-game series at Cincinnati on Friday. Texas-Arlington hits the road to begin a series at California Baptist on Friday.