Timothy Scott Baker (born September 19, 1981 in
Shreveport, Louisiana) is a starting pitcher in
Major League Baseball for the Minnesota Twins. He
made his major league debut in May 2005 with the
Twins as a middle reliever during a three-game sweep
of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and had two road starts
against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and
Detroit Tigers before being permanently placed on
the pitching rotation at the end of August 2005 to
replace struggling pitcher Joe Mays, who was demoted
to the Twins bullpen. Baker won in his first start
on August 29, 2005, defeating the Kansas City Royals
3-2. He won the fifth starter role for the 2006
Twins over teammate Francisco Liriano. His pitching
struggles in the beginning of the 2006 season
resulted in his being demoted to the AAA Rochester
Red Wings; however, he was recalled in September
2006. He started the 2007 season at Rochester before
being called up to start in place of the released
Sidney Ponson on May 18, 2007.
