Legendary manager Dusty Baker’s son Darren gets a hit in his FIRST MLB at-bat 22 years after becoming a World Series legend as a 3-year-old bat boy

Darren Baker has already headlined a World Series game. Now he’s a Major Leaguer with a lifetime batting average of 1.000.

Darren, the son of two-time All-Star and longtime manager Dusty Baker, was one of the new players on the Washington Nationals roster when he was signed Sunday by Triple-A Rochester.

“I didn’t need an alarm clock today,” said Darren Baker, who learned he had been called up on Saturday.

The 25-year-old’s first two calls were to his parents, who arrived in Washington early Sunday morning from the West Coast, just in time for the Nationals’ final game against the Chicago Cubs.

Darren was out of the starting lineup on Sunday, but he did get a pinch-hit single in his first MLB at-bat. In fact, Darren singled on the very first pitch he saw, hitting a slider up the middle from Cubs reliever Ethan Roberts en route to a 14-1 rout of the Nationals.

Washington Nationals’ Darren Baker hits his first Major League hit in the ninth inning

Giants manager Dusty Baker answers questions while holding his son Darren in 2000

Dusty was on hand in Washington, where the World Series-winning manager exchanged a high five with his wife Melissa.

Darren, Washington’s 2021 10th-round pick, hit .285 with 49 RBIs and 38 stolen bases in Rochester. He could also play some outfield during his time in Washington.

“He grew up playing baseball,” Washington manager Dave Martinez said. “He understands the game and how to play the game. He’ll steal bases when you need him to. He’ll put the ball in play to get guys over and hit some big runs. All that stuff. He’s just a baseball player.”

Darren is best known for the moment in Game 5 of the 2002 World Series, when, as a 3-year-old boy, he left the dugout early to retrieve Giants outfielder Kenny Lofton’s bat in the seventh inning.

What Darren didn’t realize was that Giants baseman JT Snow was charging toward home plate.

Fortunately for Darren and his father Dusty, who was the Giants coach at the time, the alert Snow picked up the unsuspecting bat boy and brought him back to the dugout.

JT Snow grabs Dusty Baker’s 3-year-old son Darren during Game 5 of the 2002 WS

Batboy Darren Baker sits in the dugout in Game 6 after playing a key role in Game 5

If it weren’t for Snow, Darren could have been trampled by Giants infielder David Bell, who also scored on the play. Bell is now the manager of the Cincinnati Reds, another position previously held by Baker.

“That’s something he can’t even remember,” Dusty Baker said. “He’s reminded of it all the time, but he can’t remember it. That’s quite a story. At the time, it seemed kind of funny or embarrassing or something, but in the full circle of life, maybe it was meant to happen.”

One of Dusty Baker’s managerial stops was in Washington in 2016 and 2017, and Darren Baker spent time around the Nationals those summers. The younger Baker said Sunday that he felt comfortable in the clubhouse, particularly in Washington, because he knew exactly how to get there.

Chicago Cubs manager Dusty Baker and his son Darren wait for a television interview (left). A 3-year-old Darren (right) picks up some supplies while working as a bat boy in 2002

Giants’ Barry Bonds Giants talks to Darren Baker, son of manager Dusty Baker in 2003

That’s just one aspect of Baker’s already rich baseball life, which he will build on as he embarks on his Major League career.

“I’ve had a lot of different experiences and met a lot of people to get to this point, and I’m just getting started,” Baker said. “We’ll see where it goes, but I’m grateful for it.”

Darren Baker was nearly drafted out of high school, but opted to join the Cal Bears instead, posting a .327 batting average through 55 games this season. He started 123 consecutive games for the school.

“Darren is one of those players that every coach or executive wants to have on their team,” Wareham coach Jerry Weinstein, a veteran player development executive in Colorado’s organization, told The Athletic in 2019. “He’s worked hard to achieve everything he’s achieved, and I think he’s a long way from the player he could be. He would never ask for anything because he’s Dusty Baker’s son.”