Towards the end of 1711 Baker was detached by Jennings to Lisbon and the Azores, to protect the Portuguese, East India, and Brazil trade, especially from René Duguay-Trouin and Jacques Cassard. In the course of a cruise from Lisbon in February 1712 he drove a large Spanish ship ashore near Cape St. Mary's, but the weather was rough, and before he could approach, the wreck was gutted and destroyed by the Portuguese.