Barker attended Albany High School and the College of Saint Rose, an NCAA Division II school in one of the only college conferences to use wood bats throughout the leagues' season. Barker was selected by Detroit Tigers in 11th Round of 1993 amateur entry draft. Known for his speed on the basepaths and in center field, Barker advanced as far as Triple A with the Toledo Mud Hens, but was selected by the Houston Astros from Tigers in the 1998 MLB Rule 5 draft. Per Rule 5, he spent the 1999 season on the Astros' roster. Because of his last name, Barker gained temporary distinction as one of the Astros' "Killer B's", which included first basemanJeff Bagwell and second basemanCraig Biggio, two formidable veteran players who helped established the Astros as perennial playoff contenders in the 1990s and 2000s. In fact, journalist Dayn Perry jocosely noted the 1999 Astros, "in pursuit of arcane history, used eight players whose last names began with 'B.'" The eight included Bagwell, Paul Bako, Barker, Derek Bell, Sean Bergman, Lance Berkman, Biggio, and Tim Bogar. Successful in very limited playing time, the Astros used Barker mostly as a pinch runner and sometimes as a pinch hitter. Barker played in 81 games, made 90 plate appearances and batted.288 with a.384 on-base percentage and 17 stolen bases that season. He scored 23 runs while having 21 hits. He appeared in two games against Atlanta Braves in the National League Division Series, stealing a base and scoring a run. Barker spent the 2000 season between the major league club and AAA New Orleans. He struggled for the Astros, batting.224 in 67 at-bats. Similar results followed in 2001, as he struggled even more at the plate and was again used primarily as a pinch runner. Although attracted to Barker's blazing speed, the Astros felt that his bat was not developing as they had hoped and they released him after the 2001 season. Before the 2002 season, Barker was signed by the Montreal Expos but released after spring training. He was picked up by the Boston Red Sox and assigned to AAA Pawtucket. Again Barker struggled with the bat and was released by the Red Sox after appearing in only 14 games. He signed with Reynosa in the Mexican League and spent the remainder of the season there. He signed with the Atlanta before the 2003 season but was once again released after Spring Training. He played 3 games with the Somerset Patriots an independent team in the Atlantic League before being picked up by the Baltimore Orioles and assigned to the AA Bowie Baysox. After batting just.237 in a brief stint for the Baysox, Barker retired from baseball.
Personal life
Barker is married and currently resides in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. He is currently the outfield/baserunning coordinator for the San Diego Padres. Barker also served as the hitting coach for the Somerset Patriots.
