He hasn’t pitched in a baseball game in two years, yet Dylan Baker of Juneau has remained on the 40-man roster for the Cleveland Indians because of his rocket right arm.<\/p>\n
The 24-year-old has a crazy-good fastball that touches 97 mph and crazy-bad luck with injuries that have kept him off the field.<\/p>\n
Upside trumps downtrodden, so Baker is back at spring training this year with the reigning American League champion Indians in Goodyear, Arizona.<\/p>\n
And he’s not messing around.<\/p>\n
He recently aced the team’s annual endurance test for pitchers and catchers, called the ‘beep test,’ in which he outlasted the rest of the field.<\/p>\n
“We had to run 20 yards down and back in a certain amount of time, then we would get about 10 seconds to rest, which kept getting less and less as we ran more. I ran 69 of them and got $750 for winning. It was awesome,” Baker told me.<\/p>\n
Traditionally, the winner completes only 40 laps before bowing out.<\/p>\n
However, Baker is more resilient than most. How else do you explain him sticking with his dream after suffering a broken ankle in 2014, Tommy John surgery in 2015 and lingering elbow problems in 2016.<\/p>\n
“I never realized I was this mentally tough to get through all of this,” he said. “My wife, family and friends were huge supporters too, so that helped me a ton.<\/p>\n
“It’s been an unbelievable road and it definitely will make this year probably one of the most special years for sure. I can’t wait.”<\/p>\n
Baker attended spring training last year with the Indians, but obviously didn’t throw the ball.<\/p>\n
This time around he is reportedly contending for a roster spot in the bullpen.<\/p>\n
“I’m feeling really good,” he said. “I can’t wait to start feeling that rush again. There is nothing like it.”<\/p>\n
He has pitched four seasons in the minor leagues, racking up 54 professional appearances with an 11-10 record, 3.68 ERA and 240 strikeouts in 242 innings.<\/p>\n
Baker is one of eight Alaskans to win 10 games and earn 200 Ks at the pro level.<\/p>\n
He last pitched in 2015 when he threw a five-inning no-hitter with nine strikeouts for Class A+ Lynchburg. Last season he was projected to be a starter for Class AA Akron before more elbow issues sidelined him for the year.<\/p>\n
He’s grateful to be back at spring training, where the Indians never lost hope with their former fifth-round draft pick.<\/p>\n
“They always had my back,” Baker said. “The Indians and all the staff were always checking up on me, making sure everything was going good. Just a great feeling knowing I have all that.”<\/p>\n
Van Williams is a freelance writer in Anchorage and writes for the Alaska Sports Blog.<\/b><\/p>\n
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