The Helping Hands Of Trainer B.J. Baker

As one of Harvard's six official athletic trainers, B.J. Baker is heavily involved in the daily grind of athletics. He tapes sprained ankles, takes care of strained muscles and helps athletes in physical therapy.

But Baker's role extends beyond the training room.

He makes players laugh and gives them moral support. He goes to every of his team's games and serves as an essential link between players and coaches.

As an athletic trainer, Baker works closely with athletes and coaches. His assigned sports are men's soccer in the fall, men's basketball in the winter and men's lacrosse in the spring. In addition, he works with the men's swimming team.

"I take care of the players when they have injuries and decide whether they must see the doctor," he says.

His players, however, do not view him as just another member of the athletic staff.

"He is more than just a guy who tapes ankles," senior Paul Faust, co-captain of the lacrosse team, says. "He has a pretty distinct role, keeping everyone laughing about things. He's a good friend of all the players and always makes a poster for home games. He's an honorary member of the team."

Senior Jeremy Amen, co-captain of the soccer team, says, quite simply, "He's the greatest. I couldn't say enough about the guy."

Training to be a Trainer

Baker graduated in 1986 from Cortland State College in New York where he won awards for his work inside the classroom as physical education major and outside as a student trainer.

Baker went on to earn a masters degree, and in the fall of 1987, he joined Harvard's athletic staff. In his spare time, he serves as a trainer for the Boston Blazers, a professional Indoor Lacrosse club.

While in high school, Baker participated heavily in athletics, playing football, basketball and baseball. He also had a "certain affinity for sciences and [found] medicine very intriguing," he says.

Baker chose athletic training, he says, because it combined his interests in medicine and sports.

"What good is it to make $160,000 a year when you can only spend two weeks with family?" Baker says.

Baker believes that the "interaction with the kids" is the best part of his work. Helping an injured player return to his sport is the main reward for Baker. Of course, seeing smiles on those he treats makes his job doubly satisfying.

For Baker, there is also another role he must fulfill: "it is important to become a social part of the team," he says.

To that end, he tries to always be there for athletes. He encourages them to discuss their problems with him, whether they concern school work, family or their team.

"The trainer is supposed to be a buffer between the student and the coach," Baker says.

That factors in, Baker says, when a coach unduly pressures an injured athlete into playing. Athletic trainers, in consultation with doctors, have the final say, making it easier on the student.

"Making decisions about injuries takes pressure off the athlete," Baker says.

Not know for his silence--or, for that matter, brevity--the energetic Baker views Harvard with characteristic enthusiasm.

He says that the school gives athletes the education they need for a secure future. They are students first, but they still have the opportunity to excel in sports, he says.

"Harvard approaches athletics the way it should be," he says.