Major League Baseball outfielder Dave Parker of Grenada, Mississippi passed away on Saturday at the age of 74 according to Andrew Crane of the New York Post. The cause of death was Parkinson’s Disease. Parker is among those to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown this summer.
Who did Parker play for?
Parker played 19 Major League Baseball regular seasons from 1973 to 1991. He was with the Pittsburgh Pirates for 11 seasons from 1973 to 1983, four seasons with the Cincinnati Reds from 1984 to 1987, two seasons with the Oakland Athletics from 1988 to 1989, one season with the Milwaukee Brewers in 1990, and shared the 1991 season with the California Angels and Toronto Blue Jays.
MLB Career Statistics
Parker batted .290 with 339 home runs and 1493 runs batted in. During 2466 games. 9358 at bats, and 10184 plate appearances, he scored 1272 runs and had 2712 hits, 526 doubles, 75 triples, 154 stolen bases, 683 walks, 4405 total bases, 86 sacrifice flies, one sacrifice bunt, an on base percentage of .339, and a slugging percentage of .471. Parker’s sacrifice bunt came in Parker’s rookie season, in a 4-1 Pirates win over the Philadelphia Phillies on August 5, 1973.
MLB/National League Leader
Parker was the National League batting champion while with the Pirates in 1978. Also that season, he had the best batting average in the Major Leagues, and the best on base plus slugging percentage in the Major Leagues at .979. Parker led the National League in 1978 with 340 total bases and a .585 slugging percentage.
In 1975, Parker also led the National League with a .541 slugging percentage. Two years later in 1977, Parker led the National League in batting average (.338), doubles (44), and hits (215). Then in 1979, Parker led the National League with nine sacrifice flies.
Parker had another fine season with the Reds in 1985. He led the National League in doubles (42), runs batted in (125), and total bases (350). It was one of two straight years Parker led the National League in total bases as he had 304 with the Reds in 1986. Then, near the end of his career, Parker led the American League with 14 sacrifice flies while with the Brewers in 1990.
Accolades
Parker was the National League Most Valuable Player with the Pirates in 1978. He won two World Series (1979 with Pittsburgh and 1989 with Oakland). Parker was a six-time National League All-Star (1977, 1979, 1980, and 1981 with Pittsburgh and 1985 and 1986 with Cincinnati), and an American League All-Star with the Brewers in 1990.
Parker won three Gold Glove Awards while with the Pirates for three straight years from 1977 to 1979. He then won three Silver Slugger Awards (1985 and 1986 with Cincinnati, and 1990 with Milwaukee).
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