Dave Parker, Hall of Famer and 7-time All-Star, dies at 74

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By C. Trent Rosecrans and Rob Biertempfel

Dave Parker left an indelible imprint on Pittsburgh Pirates history by swatting titanic home runs and making fantastic throws from right field. Yet, in the earliest stages of his career, it was Parker’s speed that caught everyone’s attention.

Pirates relief pitcher Kent Tekulve saw Parker for the first time during minor-league spring training in 1971. “He hit a ground ball two steps to the backhand of the shortstop, and beat it easy,” Tekulve said. “Before he got big and they changed his swing, probably the closest player I could compare him to, as far as flat-out speed, was Omar Moreno.”

A couple of years later, during big league camp, Willie Stargell studied Parker in the batting cage. “If you get some lift in that swing,” Stargell suggested, “you’re going to hit a lot of home runs.” The advice from the Hall of Fame slugger paid off. In 1975, his first full season in the majors, Parker batted .308 and was fifth in the National League with 25 homers.

“Dave Parker was by far the most all-around talented player I ever played with,” Tekulve said.

Parker died Saturday at the age of 74. Over 19 seasons in the majors, Parker hit .290 with 339 homers and 154 stolen bases. On Dec. 8, 2024, he was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Classic Baseball Era Committee along with Dick Allen.

We are heartbroken to learn of the passing of Hall of Famer Dave Parker.

A legendary Pirate, Parker spent 11 years in a Pirates uniform, winning 2 batting titles, an MVP award and a World Series Championship in 1979.

The Cobra was part of the inaugural Pirates Hall of Fame… pic.twitter.com/UuikGxw6dI

— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) June 28, 2025

“Dave Parker was a gifted all-around player whose numerous accomplishments led to his upcoming induction in Cooperstown this summer,” commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “He was a World Series Champion with the 1979 Pirates and the 1989 Athletics, a beloved All-Star Red in his hometown of Cincinnati, and an All-Star in Milwaukee. Dave was also a three-time Gold Glover on the strength of his famous arm, a two-time batting champion, and the winner of the inaugural Home Run Derby in 1985.

“All of us throughout the game are deeply saddened by this loss. We will remember the Cobra forever, especially as his name soon officially joins the legends of our National Pastime. On behalf of Major League Baseball, I extend my sympathy to Dave’s family and his fans across the game.”

With the Pirates from 1973 to 1983, Parker earned one National League MVP award, two batting titles and three Gold Gloves. His unabashed swagger and sublime performance energized the “We are Fam-a-lee” team that won the 1979 World Series.

“He had a big personality and his passing has left an even bigger void with all who knew him. Our hearts go out to his wife, Kellye, and his family,” Pirates owner Bob Nutting said in a statement.

“I could do it all,” Parker said in a 2019 interview with The Athletic. “I vocalized quite a bit. People tell me that I ‘played angry.’ That’s what I did, and it worked for me. But I always played hard, and I respected my fellow man. I did everything on the field that I could.”

Parker was a star tailback in high school, but a knee injury during his senior year forced him to give up football. The Pirates drafted him in the 14th round in 1970. Although he wasn’t a marquee pick, Parker shot through the minors and made his big-league debut in July 1973. That was a difficult season for the Pirates, who were reeling from the death of Roberto Clemente on New Year’s Eve 1972.

By the middle of the ’70s, Parker was cemented as the Pirates’ next great right fielder. “He reminded me of Clemente,” Moreno said. From 1975 to 1979, the team averaged 93 wins per season and captured two NL East crowns.

“Back when I played, when the Pirates showed up, it was like a bad circus was coming to town,” said former Pirates manager Clint Hurdle, who was a rookie outfielder with the Kansas City Royals in 1977. “They had so many different weapons. The pitching staff, the starters, the bullpen. That offense could beat you so many different ways. And the unis they wore just topped everything off. There was no telling what they were going to come out wearing.”

The Pirates’ sometimes garish combinations of double-knit polyester uniforms drew snickers, but no one ever dared laugh at Parker. He relaxed in the clubhouse wearing a black T-shirt that declared, “If you hear any noise, it’s just me and the boys boppin’.” He swung a sledgehammer in the on-deck circle at Three Rivers Stadium.

“There was a time when many of us in the game thought Dave Parker was the baddest dude in baseball,” Hurdle said. “There wasn’t anything he couldn’t do.”

It wasn’t all brawn, either. Parker played the game with laser focus. Tekulve recalled an error-filled play when Parker showed how well he understood all the little things that go into a game.

“It was one of those screwed-up, ‘put up the circus tent’ plays when the ball got thrown here and there, all over the place,” Tekulve said. “By the time the play was done, Dave Parker was standing at home plate. There was nothing left for him to do in the outfield, and he knew the next throw would have to be to home plate, if there was going to be one, and so he was there.”

The relationship between Parker and Pittsburgh fans soured in the 1980s, as the Pirates went into a downward spiral. After the 1983 season, Parker left as a free agent and signed with the Cincinnati Reds, his hometown team. He also played for the Oakland A’s, Milwaukee Brewers, California Angels and Toronto Blue Jays before retiring in 1991.

“I’m pretty satisfied with my career,” Parker said. “I made one mistake, which was the 1985 (drug) trial. That’s the only mark against me. But even with all that going on, I played hard and at a high level under all that pressure.”

During that trial in Pittsburgh, Parker and several other players testified before a grand jury against a cocaine ring that was active in the team clubhouses at Three Rivers Stadium. Parker was among seven players who were named as “regular users” and suspended for one season by MLB, although their sentences later were reduced to fines.

Parker finished 288 hits shy of 3,000, the mark that often ensures a spot in the Hall of Fame. During his 15 years on the writers’ ballot, he was snubbed three times by the Expansion Era and Modern Era committees, most recently in 2019. In December 2024, Parker was elected to the Hall of Fame as a member of the 2025 class. He will be enshrined posthumously on July 27.

Parker was a coach for the Angels and St. Louis Cardinals and later helped out in spring training as a special instructor with the Pirates. In 2013, he revealed that he was battling Parkinson’s disease.

(Photo: Justin K. Aller / Getty Images)

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