Carl David Baker (born February 16, 1953) is a former American football executive and politician. He was President and CEO of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio from 2014 to 2021.[5]
One of Baker's more imposing aspects is his size, standing at 6 feet 9 inches tall and weighing around 400 pounds.[6] He was a basketball power forward at UC Irvine from 1971–75 where he established the school record for career rebounds (926) that stood for 44 years until broken by Jonathan Galloway in 2019.[7] Baker also played two seasons of professional basketball in Switzerland before attending law school.
Baker was a City Councilman of Irvine, California in the mid-1980s.[8] He left his political career in 1988 after being convicted of forgery in California for attempting to forge a $48,000 check from the nonprofit Irvine Health Foundation (of which he was executive director) for use as campaign funds during a run for a Congressional seat.[8][9][10]
On November 8, 1996, Baker became the fourth commissioner of the Arena Football League. He started in the league as the owner of the Anaheim Piranhas, which he left after a single season of owning the team to become league commissioner.[11] Baker resigned as Arena Football League Commissioner at ArenaBowl XXII, on July 25, 2008, after almost twelve years as commissioner.[12]
From 2009 to 2014, he was Managing Partner for Union Village,[13] an integrated health care village in Henderson, Nevada.[5]
On January 2, 2014, Baker was announced as the President of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.[14] In his first three years of leadership at the Hall, the organization's net assets grew 161%.[15] He was also involved in the Hall of Fame Village, a mixed-use development surrounding the Hall of Fame.[16][17][18]
On November 28, 2017, Baker received the March of Dimes Sports Leadership Award.[19][20]
On October 16, 2021, Baker announced his retirement as the president of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.[21]
Personal life
Baker and his wife Colleen were married in the 1990s after both being divorced for several years. Baker has two sons from a prior marriage, along with a stepson and stepdaughter.[22][23][24] One of his sons is Sam Baker, who played for the Atlanta Falcons as an offensive tackle. Baker is a Christian.[25]
