Home Run Baker
Frank Baker was known by his given name for the first few years of his career, before earning his nickname due to his exploits in the 1911 World Series, and the nickname stuck for the rest of his career.
Baker joined the Philadelphia Athletics late in the 1908 season, and in his first full season in 1909, he led the league with 19 triples. Through 2 full seasons in the Majors, he had hit a total of 6 home runs, which didn't seem to foreshadow his future nickname.
In 1911 he led the league with 11 homers, a huge total for that time, but it was the World Series that year that earned him his nickname. He had hit .409 in the previous year's World Series win, but this time he hit game-winning home runs in games 2 and 3, off Rube Marquard and Christy Mathewson. There was a 6-day break after Game 3 due to rain, and the newspapers spent days talking about his heroics and gave him the new moniker.
The next 2 years he led the league in both home runs and RBI's, and in 1913 he led the A's to their 3rd championship in 4 years by batting .450 with 7 RBI's in 5 games against the New York Giants. In his 3 World Series championship seasons, he batted at least .375 with an average of an RBI in every game.
He led the league in home runs for the 4th straight season in 1914, and the A's returned to the World Series again as heavy favorites, but were swept by the Boston Braves, and the manager decided to dismantle his team. Baker was traded to the Yankees, but he did not want to play so far from his home in Maryland, so he refused to report in 1915.
After a season playing minor league ball close to home, he decided to go to New York, and he played 4 solid seasons for the Yankees, but not quite up to his previous standard. He retired before the 1920 to take care of his wife and daughters, who were sick with scarlet fever, but after she passed away and his children recovered, he returned to the team for 2 more seasons.
He was still a decent player in his final 2 seasons, and he had two more chances to play in the World Series, but they lost both times, and Baker only recorded 2 total hits in 5 games played, so he retired for the final time in 1922.
While Baker's career total of 96 home runs seems tiny by today's standards, especially considering his name, he was the premier power hitter of his time, and the main offensive reason for 3 World Series titles. His career was relatively short, especially with 2 missing seasons in the middle, but he was so good during his prime, and especially in the postseason, that he has to be part of the list of all-time greats.
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