Joshua Baker
| IP | 121 |
|---|---|
| ERA | 5.504 |
| WHIP | 1.463 |
| BB/9 | 4.24 |
| SO/9 | 7.364 |
- Full name Joshua H. Baker
- Born 04/02/1982 in Houston, TX
- Profile Ht.: 6'5" / Wt.: 220 / Bats: R / Throws: R
- School Rice
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Drafted in the 4th round (106th overall) by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2004 (signed for $320,000).
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Jeff Niemann, Phil Humber and Wade Townsend command most of the attention, but Rice has a fourth pitcher who will go in the early rounds of the 2004 draft. A 2001 fourth-round choice by the Rangers, Baker was drafted well ahead of all of them coming out of high school. He hasn't improved as much as they have, but he's still plenty attractive as a 6-foot-5, 210-pounder with an 88-92 mph fastball, hard slider and good splitter. His control wavers but Baker is tough to beat when he gets ahead in the count. He spent his freshman year at Alabama and has gone 17-2 since transferring back home. Undrafted because of signability concerns as a sophomore-eligible in 2003, Baker should go in about the same area he did three years ago. And he does have one edge over the Owls' aces: bloodlines. His father Johnny was an NFL linebacker, his uncle Frank was a big league infielder and his brother Jacob was an outfielder at Rice and in the Royals system. Baker also is the brother-in-law of Astros star Lance Berkman, another former Owl.
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Organization Prospect Rankings
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Baker got lost in the shuffle behind Philip Humber, Jeff Niemann and Wade Townsend at Rice--all three went in the top eight picks of the 2004 draft--but scouts were well aware of his arm. Drafted in the fourth round out of high school, he went in the same spot last June and signed for $320,000. If bloodlines count for anything, Baker is in great shape. His father Johnny was an NFL linebacker, his uncle Frank played in the majors and his brother Jacob played in the minors. He even has a big league brother-in-law in Lance Berkman. Baker's fastball resides in the 88-92 mph range, and he also throws a hard slider, a curveball and an improving changeup. He also used a splitter in college. He demonstrates solid command of each pitch. Convinced that he threw too many breaking balls at Rice, the Brewers got Baker to throw more fastballs and work on locating his heater. None of his pitches is exceptional, so Baker must hit his spots and learn to set up hitters. After pitching at an advanced college program, he could move through the system at a rapid pace, depending on his ability to work ahead of hitters and keep his pitch counts in check. At this point, he projects as a bottom-of-the-rotation pitcher in the majors and probably will start 2004 in low Class A.
