Books and articles about Frank Baker

A Maryland farm boy, Baker was a powerful slugger in the dead ball era, leading or tying for the league lead in homers four consecutive seasons (1911-14), although 12 was his top total. Baker earned his memorable nickname in the 1911 World Series, when he hit game-winning home runs on successive days against the Giants' future Hall of Fame pitchers Rube Marquard and Christy Mathewson.

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The lefthanded hitter was the third baseman in Connie Mack's fabled Philadelphia A's "$100,000 Infield," together in the years 1911-14. Teamed with him were Stuffy McInnis, Eddie Collins, and Jack Barry. Connie Mack broke his team up rather than pay the higher salaries brought on by Federal League competition, and after Baker sat out 1915 in protest, Mack sold him to the Yankees in 1916 for $35,000.

In 1920, Baker was again out of the game, due to the illness and subsequent death of his first wife. He returned to the Yankees as a part-time player and helped the team win its first two World Championships in 1921 and '22. His final at-bat was in the 1922 WS.

Baker managed in the Eastern Shore League in 1924-25 and discovered Jimmie Foxx, delivering him to Connie Mack after the 1924 season. He lived a quiet life on his farm near Trappe, MD, where he was born, making appearances at Old Timers' Games in New York and Philadelphia until his death in 1963. (JK)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » May 30, 1909: the A's Frank Baker belts the first homer over the RF wall at Shibe Park. His drive comes off Red Sox hurler Frank Arellanes. » August 24, 1909: At Detroit, A's catcher Paddy Livingston throws out Ty Cobb trying to steal 3rd during an intentional walk to Sam Crawford. Cobb intentional spikes 3B Frank Baker on his bare hand during the play, prompting howls of protest from the Athletics. The Tigers win, 7-6, and A's manager Connie Mack will complain to Ban Johnson about Cobb's dirty play. Cobb gets a warning from the AL president. » April 14, 1910: With the weather perfect, President and Mrs. William Howard Taft, along with Veep Sherman, surprise the Nationals by showing up for the season Opener. Jimmy McAleer suggests Taft throw out the first ball, and he becomes the first president to do so. Walter Johnson catches it, then pitches the first of his 14 Opening Day Washington games, striking out 9. An easy fly hit by Frank "Home Run" Baker into the overflow crowd—a ground-rule double—mars his 3–0 pitching gem over rival Eddie Plank. Gabby Street is behind the plate for Johnson, the only opener in which he catches for Walter. » October 17, 1910: With sore-armed Eddie Plank unavailable, Connie Mack will squeeze five complete games out of two pitchers in the World Series. Chief Bender's 4–1 three-hitter wins game one for the Athletics at Philadelphia. Frank Baker's three hits drive in all the runs needed to beat the Cubs' Orval Overall. » April 28, 1911: In Philadelphia, Walter Johnson picks up his first win of the year, edging the A's 2–1. Frank Baker hits a solo home run off Johnson, the first home run over the fence the Washington ace has allowed: there have been two inside-the-park homers hit of Walter. » May 19, 1911: Detroit edges the A's 9–8. Ty Cobb chips in with a triple and two runs and starts a DP from center field doubling Frank Baker off first. » July 1, 1911: The A's pound Walter Johnson for 13 runs, the most he'll allow in his career, and beat Washington, 13–8. Frank Baker hits his 2nd of five career homers off Johnson in the 6th with a man on. » July 3, 1911: At Philadelphia, the A's Frank Baker hits for the cycle in a 5–1 win over the Yankees in game two of a doubleheader. » September 7, 1911: The Cubs' Frank Schulte hits his 21st home run and brings in RBI No. 121 as the Cubs sweep the Reds, 3–0 and 4–2; he will lead the National League in both home runs and ribbies. He is the first player to have more than 20 doubles, triples, and home runs in one season. In the American League, Frank Baker's nine home runs will be tops. Ty Cobb hits eight home runs but leads in BA, RBI, hits, doubles, triples, total bases, and stolen bases. » September 26, 1911: At Shibe Park, the A's clinch their 2nd straight American League pennant, defeating the Tigers, 11–5. Frank Baker leads the offense with a homer and two doubles. Detroit, which led the A's by 12 games in May, will finish 2nd, 13 1/2 games back. » October 16, 1911: The World Series resumes today, Monday, and the pitchers continue to dominate. Rube Marquard and Eddie Plank are in command of a 1–1 game when Philadelphia's Eddie Collins doubles in the last of the 6th and Frank Baker hits one over the RF fence for a 3–1 victory. » October 17, 1911: After criticizing his teammate Rube Marquard's pitching to Frank Baker in his newspaper column, Christy Mathewson takes the mound for game three against 29-game winner Jack Coombs. Matty takes a 1–0 lead into the 9th. With one out, Baker lines another drive over the RF fence to tie it. With that blow, he becomes "Home Run" Baker to future generations. Errors by 3B Buck Herzog and SS Art Fletcher give the A's two unearned runs in the top of the 11th. New York scores once, but the A's win 3–2 behind Coombs's 3-hitter. » June 18, 1912: The Senators, in 2nd place two games behind the Red Sox, return home to face the A's, as President Taft throws out a belated Opening Day ball. Washington wins 5–4, for the Nationals' 17th straight win. Their 16 road wins is a league record until 1984. The A's will stop the win streak on the 19th and 20th by sweeping back-to-back doubleheaders. Frank Baker will go 9–for–15 and drive in the winning runs in three of the victories. » September 11, 1912: In a tumultuous game featuring an attack on an umpire and three ejections, Eddie Collins swipes six bases to pace the A's to a 9–7 win over the Tigers. In the 3rd inning, Ty Cobb foils an intentional walk when he steps across the plate to slap a single. To the dismay of the home crowd, Ump Tommy Connolly calls a foul strike, and manager Hugh Jennings gets tossed for protesting. Collins swipes his 6th base in the 8th inning and, on the front end of a double steal, crosses the plate, but Frank Baker is thrown out at 2B. Baker will reprise his record on the 22nd. » June 2, 1913: In the 2nd game of a doubleheader with the A's, Walter Johnson serve up a 4th-inning homer to Home Run Baker as the Senators lose 4–3. » June 25, 1913: In Washington, Frank Baker, a nemesis for Walter Johnson, cracks a three run homer in the 3rd inning to key a 14–2 A's victory over the Washington ace. » October 7, 1913: Rube Marquard gets the call for the Giants against Philadelphia's Chief Bender in game one of the World Series. Bender yields 11 hits, but Frank Baker's home run and three RBI pace a 6–4 win over the New Yorkers. » October 11, 1913: John McGraw loses his 3rd straight World Series. In game 5, Christy Mathewson is good, but Eddie Plank is better; his 2-hitter wins the 3–1 finale. Frank Baker at .450 and Eddie Collins at .421 lead a strong A's offense. » May 8, 1914: When the Senators relieve with Walter Johnson, the A's greet him with six runs in three innings to drive the Big Train from the mound. Johnson throw the one and only beanball of his career, a fast ball at the head of Frank "Home Run" Baker, a particular nemesis of Johnson's. The beanball misses Baker, whom Johnson calls "the most dangerous batter that I ever faced." Baker had hit .385 against the Nats ace up till this game (4 seasons); he'll hit just .207 off him in the next nine years. When the dust settles, the game ends in a 9–9 tie. » July 27, 1914: The Athletics win their 12th consective game, beating host Detroit, 8–3, and scoring 3 runs in the first inning without a hit. Jean Dubuc hits 2 A’s batters, makes a throwing error, and his teammates chip in with 2 errors to give Philadelphia the 3 runs. Frank Baker has 3 hits including a double and triple to back Herb Pennock's pitching. Detroit will beat Philadelphia tomorrow. » October 12, 1914: Joe Bush, 17–10 for the A's, faces Lefty Tyler in game 3. Tied 2–2 in the 10th, Home Run Baker drives in his only two runs of the Series, but a home run by Hank Gowdy starts a game-tying rally. After Bill James comes on and sets the A's down for two innings, Gowdy doubles. Bush gives up a walk, then throws a sacrifice bunt past Baker at 3B allowing pinch runner Les Mann to score the winning run. » February 16, 1915: Home Run Baker, 28, announces retirement following a contract dispute with Connie Mack. He will sit out the 1915 season. Mack will also have salary problems with Chief Bender, Eddie Plank, and Jack Coombs, and rather than compete with the Federal League, he releases the stars. » February 15, 1916: The Yankees buy Frank "Home Run" Baker from the Athletics for $37,500. He sat out the 1915 season in a salary dispute with Mack. » April 12, 1916: Before 20,000 at the Polo Grounds, the Yankees and Nationals battle 11 innings before the Nats push across an unearned run against starter Ray Caldwell to win 3–2. Walter Johnson strikes out 10 and walks none in the win. Frank Baker, after sitting out last season in a salary protest, has two of the five hits for New York, while Clyde Milan homers for the Nats. » July 5, 1917: In the first of two games in New York, Home Run Baker hits a 13th inning inside the park homer off Walter Johnson to give the Yankees a 5–4 win. It is Baker's 5th home run off Walter. » June 1, 1918: Losing 5-4 against the Yankees, the Tigers load the bases in the ninth with no outs. Chick Gandil lines a shot to 3B Frank Baker, who turns it into a game-ending triple play. » February 12, 1920: Frank Baker's wife, Ottalee, dies at 31, leaving two small children. Baker will miss the entire season to stay home and take care of the children, returning in 1921 to hit .294. Baker also missed the 1915 season, preferring to hold out rather than sign with the A's. » October 5, 1921: In the first one-city World Series since 1906, the Polo Grounds will be the site for all nine games. Carl Mays (27-9) is at his best, needing 86 pitches to set the Giants down with five hits—4 of them by Frank Frisch. Ruth drives in the first run of the Series in the opening inning of this 3–0 Yankee win. Mike McNally, subbing for Frank Baker at 3B, steals home in the 5th while Phil Douglas (15-10) is winding up. The game is broadcast on KDKA radio, with Grantland Rice announcing. It is the only game of the season's World Series to be aired. » March 6, 1922: Babe Ruth signs for three years at $52,000 a year. The-next-highest paid New York player is Home Run Baker at $16,000. » May 23, 1922: George Sisler and Frank Baker match homers as the Browns and Yankees go into the 7th tied 3-3. Ken Williams #12, with two on, gives St. Louis a 6–3 lead, and Browns add five more off reliever Lefty O'Doul to win, 11–3. Urban Shocker is the winner. » June 10, 1922: In St. Louis, Babe Ruth's 2-run homer in the third, off Urban Shocker, ties the game. Shocker then plunks Frank Baker, and a double, single, two errors on the same play, and sac fly score four more. Shocker then sends Carl Mays sprawling on three straight pitches before walking him, and fires his first pitch right at Whitey Witt. The Yanks score six off Shocker, and another six off relievers to win, 14–5. A foul fly in the seventh beans St. Louis owner Phil Ball, sitting behind the dugout. He has a slight concussion and requires four stitches. » April 11, 1950: The Texas League opener between Dallas and Tulsa is staged in the Cotton Bowl. The Dallas starters taking the field include Ty Cobb, Mickey Cochrane, Tris Speaker, Dizzy Dean, Travis Jackson, Frank Baker, Charlie Gehringer as well as Duffy Lewis and Dallas manager, Charlie Grimm, the two non-Hall of Famers. After Dean throws one pitch, the squad is replaced by the regular Dallas Eagles team. 53,578 fans, the largest paid crowd (since surpassed) in minor-league history, cheer.