Getting to know your prospects: Dylan Baker

By foxsports
Published

Name: Dylan Baker
Position: Right-handed pitcher
Team: Low-A Lake County Captains
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 215
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
2013 stats: 7-6, 3.63 ERA, 27 G, 143.2 IP, 124 H, 3 HR, 62 BB, 117 K
Facts & Info: The Indians selected Baker in the 5th round of the 2012 Draft out of Western Nevada Community College. Drafted as a sophomore, he first pitched college ball his freshman season for Tacoma Community College before transferring to Western Nevada. While at Western Nevada in 2012 he was named the Scenic West Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year and helped Western Nevada advance to the Junior College World Series.
The Stuff:  Baker has a good fastball that sits 92-94 MPH and was up to 100 MPH his last year in college. His fastball has good life to it and he has shown incredible strides in his velocity as he has gained 10 MPH over the last two years. He features a curveball and slurvy slider. The slider is a true out pitch as he gets good swing and miss with it because of its late biting action as it explodes through the zone. The curveball is hard sitting at 82-83 MPH with good downward action, and he also has the feel for a developing changeup.
The Delivery:  Baker is a big, strong pitcher with a live arm that has a lot of room to grow physically. He is free and easy on the mound. His stuff is electric and he misses a good amount of bats, and for a player his age he is a solid strike thrower.
The Focus: Baker is raw with a lot of tools to work with on the mound, so he will need a lot of work to refine his abilities in order for his true talents to emerge. His fastball command is improving, but it is something that he and the Indians will continue to work on going forward.  In order to have success as a starter he is going to have to develop his changeup.
The Future:  Baker has shown a lot of maturity and composure in the early stages of his pro career.  The Indians were extremely happy with his development this past season and he has solidified himself as one of the Indians best starting pitching prospects. If he can develop a good offspeed pitch in his arsenal to go with the hard fastball-slider combination, then he can really be something special.