In the new series, we will feature veterans of the horse racing industry who have dedicated more than 30 years to the sport while training fewer than 30 horses. The first article in this series will highlight coach Jimmy Baker.
Baker, a multi-stakes winning trainer, started his stable in 1989. Over the past three decades, he has overseen more than 3,600 starts and his athletes have earned more than $16.7 million in earnings.
However, Baker’s journey to success has not always been smooth, especially in recent years.
“I have trained a lot of great clients throughout my career, and I still train some great people,” Baker said. “It’s just a slightly different game now than when I first started. Back when I first started training, I was very fortunate to train some high-caliber clients such as the Steinbrenners and Governor (Brereton) Jones. Those types of clients are really invested in their mares and their mare breeding program so I have a lot of different horses in the stable.”
Last year proved challenging for Baker as his stable recorded just 30 starts and three wins, marking the lowest of his career.
“We hope to have a few well-subsidized horses in the barn,” Baker optimistically noted. “For Kentucky purses, that’s not a bad thing.”
Baker grew up in a racing family. His father, George, was a trainer in New York and gave Baker his start at the racetrack. In the 1970s, Baker finally separated from his father and went to work for trainer David Whiteley.
After his time with Whiteley, Baker then worked for future Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey.
“I was very fortunate to learn from some very talented horsemen,” Baker said. “I remember working for the Whiteleys and they always told me ‘quality over quantity’. I still think that’s true to this day.
“I’ve never trained more than 40 horses at a time and when I do train I have to be in three different places because of the state of the stables. I just go back to what the Whiteleys told me and never really wanted to. extended from that many horses.” .”
When Baker first started building his own stable, he credited McGaughey with helping him get started. Five years later, Baker had arguably the most successful horse in his care, Robert Hoeweler’s Mahogany Hall. The colt finished third in the Blue Grass Stakes (GI) that year and ninth in the Kentucky Derby (GI). As a 5-year-old, Mahogany Hall gave Baker his only Grade I win, the Whitney Handicap (GI) at Saratoga.
“He was a game changer for my career,” Baker said, smiling. “He was such a fun horse to keep in the stable, he raced from a 2-year-old to a six-year-old. Growing up in New York, I always thought the Belmont Stakes was a race to win until I ran Mahogany Hall in the Derby. Then I quickly realized the Derby was the race he changed the direction of my career for the better and was up against some very talented horses throughout his career.
Today, Baker oversees a small herd of about 10 horses at Barn 46 at Churchill Downs.
“We had a couple of 2-year-olds that came into the barn not too long ago,” Baker said. “We’ll see. We’ll always keep hope.”
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