diff --git a/docker-compose.example.yml b/docker-compose.example.yml
index 4ac87f5..3736545 100644
--- a/docker-compose.example.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.example.yml
@@ -24,6 +24,6 @@ services:
       timeout: 10s
       retries: 3
       start_period: 40s
-    # Run migrations and start server
+    # Run migrations and start server (auto-baseline on first run if needed)
     command: >
-      sh -c "npx prisma migrate deploy && node scripts/migrate-release-years.mjs && node scripts/migrate-covers.mjs && node server.js"
+      sh -c "npx prisma migrate deploy || (echo 'Baselining existing database...' && sh scripts/baseline-migrations.sh && npx prisma migrate deploy) && node scripts/migrate-release-years.mjs && node scripts/migrate-covers.mjs && node server.js"