MLB Player Profile: Florida Marlins’ John Baker
John Baker is an immensely talented catcher for the Florid Marlins. He made his Major League Baseball debut with the Marlins on July 9, 2008.
Baker was always a tremendously gifted baseball player since his early days at school level. He always batted with a lot of skill and also had brilliant talent at the plate as a catcher. He was picked up in 2002 by the Oakland Athletics in the 4th
Round of the Amateur Draft.
John then went on to play as catcher for the Florida Marlins in 2008. He has put in a good performance with the team since his start. Baker is considered by many to be a very talented catcher and is also very strong as a batter as well.
Baker is also known for his charitable and outreach work that he has done with the Military veterans of America. He has been known to visit troops around the world and to show his support for the armed services and their sacrifices that they have made over
the years.
The Marlins will be looking to Baker as the backbone of the team as Spring Training is right around the corner. The team understands the importance that Baker has in the squad and are hoping for a decent performance from him during the spring session.
Nearing the end of the 2010 MLB season, Baker had undergone Tommy John Surgery and was put on the disabled list. The recovery period for the surgery is usually close to a year and the Marlins are looking forward for his early return to join the team for
Spring Training.
Baker is looking forward to recovering quickly and joins the team for Opening Day of the 2011 MLB regular season. He has recently been working on his batting and now will start to practice his throwing as well. With the recent addition of John Buck, it looks
like Baker will not be back until much later in the 2011 season as possibly a left-handed pinch hitter for the team.
Both the player and the team understand the importance of maintaining his health and match fitness. Recover from surgery can take some time and being in the catching position also puts immense strain on the player which can pose a danger to Baker from completely
healing.
The Marlins are desperate for a successful regular season with the hope of making it into the playoffs. Although the team has some decent depth in their line-up, players like Baker are essential if they are to have any sort of success.
Baker has some amazing career statistics as he has managed a batting average of .271 with 89 RBIs and 14 home-runs. He also has an on-base percentage of .356 for the Marlins. It is clear that Baker is no slouch with the bat and is able to take on any MLB
pitching rotation. These are the qualities that excite the Marlins. The team will have no choice but to wait out his recovery period from surgery and hope that Baker can get back into form as soon as possible during the 2011 regular season.
Whatever the case, the Marlins are lucky to have a player the calibre of Baker in their line-up. Their support and faith in the player is clear by the fact they have managed to work around his Tommy John Surgery and hope that he returns quickly for the regular
season.
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