Dave Parker Dies At The Age Of 74

 

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Dateline: 1,209 Kilometers from the Gulf of Mexico

Dave Parker died on Saturday at the age of 74.

Parker a native of Cincinnati, who played baseball and football at Courter Tech High School in Northside.

Parker was drafted in the 14th round by the Pittsburgh Pirates.in 1970. He played 19 seasons in the Major Leagues, four with his hometown Reds under Pete Rose. Current Reds manager Terry Francona was his teammate in 1987.

Parker has suffered with Parkinson Disease for since 2012. He died just 19 days after his 74th birthday on June 9 and before he was to be inducted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. 

As a youth Parker would hang around Crosley Field and collect balls that the likes of Frank Robinson and Gus Bell would hit out of the ballpark.

“We would fight for balls outside of the stadium until we got enough to pay for whatever’s going to cost us for the day.” Parker said in a press conference on Zoom for his selection to the Hall of Fame.

Parker lived in the neighborhood surrounding Crosley Field.  Frank Robinson and Vada Pinson gave him bats and gloves as a youth. He also admitted to charging fans to watch their cars in the parking lot.

“I was a five-tool player? I could do them all,” Parker said

Indeed, Parker was the quintessential five-tool player. He could hit for average, a career .290 average that included batting titles in 1977 (.338) and 1978 (.334). He could hit for power with 339 career home runs and 1,493 RBI. He led the National League in doubles twice with 44 for the Pirates in 1977 and 42 with the Reds in 1985. He led the NL with 125 RBI in 1985. No Reds’ player has led the league in RBI since then. He had speed with 154 career stolen bases, including 76 between 1976 and 1979. He was one of the best defensive outfielders that featured a strong accurate arm. Parker had 154 assists from mostly right field. He led the NL with 26 assists in 1977.

“I loved throwing out runners,” Parker said. “I had 21 one year and 25 another year. So I enjoyed throwing out players and if they kept running, I would hit them in the back of the head with the ball.”

Parker played 11 seasons with the Pirates, winning Most Valuable Player honors in 1978. He was an All-Star for Pittsburgh in four seasons. He came home to Cincinnati, signing as a free agent in December 1983.  

It was a wise investment by the Reds Parker was an All-Star for the Reds in 1985 and 1986. He was  second in the MVP voting behind Willie McGee in 1985. He was fifth in the MVP voting in 1986 behind Mike Schmidt, Glen Davis, Gary Carter and Keith Hernandez.

IParker led the Reds in 1984 and 1985 in runs scored (73,88), RBI (94,125) and added 116 RBI in 1986. He led the Reds four straight years 1984-1987 with, 173,198,174,139. Parker led the Reds  with 28 doubles in 1984, a league-leading 42 in 1985, and 31 in 1986. He led the Reds with 16 home runs in 1984, 34 in 1986 and 31 in 1987.

No Reds player has driven in over 118 runs since Parker. Only Greg Vaughn in 199 and Ken Griffey Jr. in 2000 have driven home more than Parker’s 1986 number of 116. Both had 118 RBI.