USM Baseball Player Signs National Letter of Intent

Josh Baker, a senior at , signed a National Letter of Intent to attend NCAA Division I Jacksonville University on a baseball scholarship. 

Baker is a left-handed pitcher, outfielder and first baseman on the USM baseball team, which won the 2010 Division 2 state championship.

Last season Baker had a .532 batting average, an on-base percentage of .612 and a .886 slugging percentage. On the mound Baker was 4-3 with an ERA of 1.48 and struck out 76 batters in 52 innings for the Wildcats. 

“Josh has meant a great deal to our baseball program," USM baseball coach Tim Bartz said. "He started as a freshman and contributed immediately as a pitcher and hitter. He was one of the key cogs in our championship run in 2010. He’s an absolute joy to coach; his work ethic is second to none. I’m looking forward to his senior season as he leads a group of talented seniors in 2012.” 

Jacksonville’s baseball team is a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference. Jacksonville’s associate head coach/pitching coach Tim Montez recruited Baker. The list of previous students developed by Montez includes Philadelphia Phillies ace Cliff Lee, Detroit’s mid-season acquisition pitcher Doug Fister, and Chicago Cubs Matt Garza.

“Josh is a three-sport athlete that’s a baseball guy first," Bartz said. "He is on pace to eclipse or set every offensive record in Wildcat baseball history. I know Jacksonville will be happy to have him.”

USM athletic director Rick Johns called Baker’s signing “an auspicious occasion” and the head of University School’s Upper School, Rosie Lyons, said that she believed it was the first time that a USM student had signed a National Letter of Intent to receive a full scholarship for athletics.

“According to recent statistics, about two percent of high school athletes are awarded athletics scholarships to compete in college," Johns said. "There are more than 1,600 collegiate baseball programs across the country and on average, 5.6 percent of high school baseball players receive some sort of college scholarship. 297 schools playing NCAA Division I baseball and each coach has 11.7 total scholarships.

A National Letter of Intent is a binding agreement between a prospective student-athlete and an NCAA member institution. Only students receiving athletics financial aid may sign a National Letter of Intent.

“Baseball is known as an equivalency sport," Johns said. "This means that since each school has only a limited number of scholarships, it may divide each scholarship up between many athletes, perhaps giving half or even a quarter scholarships effectively to all rostered players. Or each school will give scholarships to just a select number of players, usually pitchers, catchers or power hitters. Josh is one of the latter, which means he is considered one of the very elite high school baseball players in the country.”