Baer Knew Marist Was Where He Wanted To Go From The Start

Thomas Baer OF / Joel Barlow, CT / 2025

EASTON, Ct. - TJ Baer understands what lies ahead as a Division I college baseball recruit.

“It will be a challenge for sure,” said the incoming senior at Joel Barlow High School, who recently made a commitment to attend Marist College. “Freshman year we play at Vanderbilt to open the year. I’ve been one of the best on my team all my life so it will be interesting to see how I match up with others that have been the best.”

A showcase at Marist, with the Director of Operations in attendance, and a camp a month later brought initial interest in Baer before the 35th-rated 2025 outfielder in New England continued to impress in the spring.

“I had a great year,” Baer related. “I sent them videos and they came to see me play the last game of the year. We set up a date to get on campus where I met the assistant and head coach and they offered. It was a good package with athletics and academics. It’s a school that I really wanted to go to.”

The University of New Haven and Southern New Hampshire were others that offered with Bryant and URI among the schools also making contact with the 5-10 170-pounder, who admits it was not an easy recruiting process.

“It was a little difficult,” Baer noted. “It was hard to reach out to coaches. I sent videos of my swing to go along with my videos on PBR. That was big with Marist. I had a showcase with PBR before I met them and ran a 6.6. They brought that up to me.”

That was only part of what Marist liked about the 18th-ranked senior outfielder in Connecticut.

“I’m a good leader on the field and step up in big games,” Baer said. “In the playoffs I threw out three runners from center field, one in the quarterfinals, one in the semifinals and one in the finals.”

There is more that made Marist covet the 76th-rated 2025 in Connecticut.

“My hitting is consistent, I only struck out three times all season,” Baer said. “I have a good attitude and I’m a leader. I’m a five-tool player.”

The 16-year-old is confident he can be an asset in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference program at Marist, which is located 90 minutes from home.

“I’m a hard worker,” Baer explained. “I’ll put my head down and work, I’m someone who will not make excuses. I want to help my teammates and coaches, anything to help the team win.”

The idea of playing at the next level came early in high school.

“I made the varsity freshman year,” Baer reflected. “That’s when I knew this was real. I love the sport and knew I belonged.”

Improvement followed for the 187th-ranked senior in New England.

“Sophomore year I struggled some at leadoff and batted second,” Baer said. “This year leading off grew me as a player. There was more purpose in reaching first base. In 22 of 27 games I reached leading off the game.

“I put in the work, working on speed and strength. I know you can always get better and I can’t wait to see what the future has for me.”

Baer was quick to point out that there was a lot of help in getting to this point in his baseball journey.

“I want to thank the coaches of Wow Factor East Coast (formerly the CT Rage), especially coach Zach Tower and coach Chris Sharma, for making me the player I am now,” Baer said. “I also thank my high school coaches at Joel Barlow for believing in me and putting trust in me as a player. It has made me grow tremendously.

“I would also like to give a special thanks to Wayne Mazzoni for being a college advisor during this time. His hard work reaching out to coaches for me was a crucial part in my process.”

Baer, who carries a 3.5 GPA in high school and plans to major in business management at Marist, admits to a feeling of relief that his recruitment has come to an end.

“It was definitely stressful, but I knew Marist was where I wanted to go from the start,” Baer concluded. “Now I’m looking to grow as a person, become stronger and more independent. I’m ready to grind with my teammates, grow mentally stronger and just become better overall.”