Darren Baker

Classroom

Baker, an American studies major, owns a 3.0 GPA. He is on pace to graduate from the University of California, Berkeley. It was recently named the No. 2 public university in the United States by U.S. News & World Report.

He will become the first member of his immediate family to earn a college degree.

Character

Baker is a high-energy and competitive student-athlete who carries a drive to lead his team to success. He lives for the big moment and is a natural leader, on and off the field.

The son of well-respected MLB manager Dusty Baker, his time spent in major-league dugouts during his youth taught him the ins and outs of carrying himself in a professional manner.

“Baker continues to be a high-quality leader for our Cal Baseball program. He carries himself the way every coach wants a student-athlete to - with a smile and an infectious personality that rubs off on his teammates each day.”
-Head Coach Mike Neu

Community

Baker is a native of Granite Bay, California. In 2020, he helped his local community by raising money through a GoFundMe campaign. Over $11,000 was raised to help rebuild small businesses that were victims of looting. There were 170-plus individual donors.

Shortly after the 2020 season was canceled, Baker donated 1,000 meals to Feeding America. He helped feed families that were struggling financially during the initial stages of the pandemic.

Competition

Prior to 2021, Baker was named a preseason All-American by Baseball America.

One of the nation’s top infielders, he was named to the 2019 PAC-12 All-Defensive Team. Baker owns a .970 fielding percentage.

He is a four-year starter for the Golden Bears, making 114 career starts, including 100 consecutive since his freshman year. In 2019, Baker started all 52 games and was a key cog in California’s postseason run.

Baker has career statistics of a .290 BA, .346 OBP, 133 hits, 84 runs, and 33 stolen bases.