Larry Parrish

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Larry Parrish
Larry Parrish.jpg
Third baseman / Right fielder / Designated hitter
Born: (1953-11-10) November 10, 1953 (age 71)
Winter Haven, Florida
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 6, 1974, for the Montreal Expos
Last MLB appearance
October 2, 1988, for the Boston Red Sox
MLB statistics
Batting average .263
Home runs 256
Runs batted in 992
Teams
As player

As manager
Career highlights and awards

Larry Alton Parrish (born November 10, 1953) is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and manager. Parrish played with the Montreal Expos (1974–81), Texas Rangers (1982–88) and Boston Red Sox (1988). He also played two seasons in Japan, for the Yakult Swallows (1989) and the Hanshin Tigers (1990). He also served as manager of the Detroit Tigers (1998–99).

Playing career

Making his debut in 1974 at the age of 20, Parrish became a solid hitter as a third baseman in the 1970s and 1980s, hitting 20 or more home runs in a season five times during his major league career. He was a two-time All-Star, and in 1979 was named the Montreal Expos Player of the Year after batting .307 with 30 homers and 82 runs batted in. Larry is the only Montreal Expo to ever hit 3 home runs in one game on three separate occasions (May 29, 1977 - July 30, 1978 - April 25, 1980). In the May 1977 game against the Cardinals, he went 5 for 5 batting in 5 runs in a 14-4 victory. In the April 1980 game, he drove in all 7 runs for Montreal in an 8-7 loss against Atlanta. Parrish ranks seventh on the Texas Rangers all-time home run list (149) and eighth in RBIs at 522. He closed out his American Major League career by joining the Boston Red Sox during the stretch run of the 1988 season, in which the team won the American League Eastern Division championship.

After his Major League Baseball career ended, Parrish played for two different Japanese major league teams. Parrish had a career .263 batting average in Major League Baseball with 256 home runs and 992 runs batted in. In 13 career playoff games, he batted .182 with no home runs and three RBIs.

Coaching career

After retiring from the majors and spending time playing for the Yakult Swallows and Hanshin Tigers of the Japanese Central League, Parrish became a full-time coach within the Detroit Tigers organization. In 1992, Parrish was named the manager for the Single-A Niagara Falls of the New York - Penn League, and won the league championship in 1993. In 1995 he was named the roving hitting instructor for the Tigers minor league system. In 1996, he returned to the dugout as the manager of the Double-A Jacksonville Suns, where he won another League Championship the same year. Parrish then served as bench coach under manager Buddy Bell for the 1997 season and part of the 1998 before Bell was fired. Parrish was promoted as the replacement, and managed the Tigers from 1998–99, compiling an 82–104 record, but was replaced by Phil Garner for the 2000 season. Parrish managed the Tigers through their final season at Tiger Stadium. Parrish remained in the Tigers organization as a scout from 2000–2002, and in 2003 he returned to the dugout once again as the manager for the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens of the International League.

In 2005, Parrish managed the Mud Hens to an impressive 89–55 record and the Governors' Cup as champions of the International League. The Mud Hens defeated the Indianapolis Indians. Following the season, Parrish was named the 2005 Minor League Manager of the Year by The Sporting News.

In 2006, Parrish led the Mud Hens to a 76–66 record and a repeat of the Governor's Cup, giving the Mud Hens their third title and making them back to back champions for the first time in team history. This time, the Mud Hens defeated the Rochester Red Wings. The team moved on to play in the first Triple-A Baseball National Championship Game, in Oklahoma City, where they would take on the Tucson Sidewinders of the Pacific Coast League. The Mud Hens fell to the Sidewinders by a score of 5–2.

On October 29, 2010, it was announced that Parrish would become the hitting coach for the Atlanta Braves, replacing Terry Pendleton, who was moved to first base coach. After the Braves offense went from first in the National League in On-base percentage in 2010 to fourteenth in 2011 with roughly the same lineup, Braves general manager Frank Wren announced on September 30, 2011 that Parrish would not return to his duties for the 2012 season.[1]

Parrish was named manager of the West Michigan Whitecaps for the 2013 season.

Parrish was elected to the International League Hall of Fame as a manager in 2013.[2]

On September 18, 2013, it was announced that Parrish would return to the Mud Hens for his third stint as manager. He replaces Phil Nevin, whose contract was not renewed.[3] On August 2, 2015, Parrish announced his plan to retire at the end of the Mud Hens' season.[4][5]

Highlights

  • Two-time All-Star (1979, 1987)
  • Hit three grand slams in a week (July 4, 7, and 10, 1982), tying the MLB record set by Jim Northrup
  • Compiled four career three-home run games, including one instance where the home runs came on consecutive at-bats (July 30, 1978), and is one of only eight players to accomplish the feat in both leagues (Babe Ruth, Johnny Mize, Dave Kingman, Cory Snyder, Darnell Coles, Claudell Washington and Darryl Strawberry are the others)
  • Four league championships as manager:
    • 1993 (Niagara Falls of the New York - Penn League)
    • 1996 (Jacksonville Suns of the Southern League)
    • 2005 and 2006 (Toledo Mud Hens of the International League)

See also

References

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External links

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