Mark Alan Parent (born September 16, 1961) is a former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...

who played from 1986 to 1998 and was the bench coach for the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

from 2012 to 2015.

Minor league career

After graduating from

Anderson Union High School Anderson Union High School is a high school in Anderson, California. Notable alumni *Rick Bosetti, former Major League Baseball outfielder for four different teams * Mike Humiston, former head baseball coach for Waynesburg University, played in ...

Anderson, California Anderson is a city in Shasta County, California, approximately 10 miles south of Redding. Its population is 11,323 as of the 2020 census, up from 9,932 from the 2010 census. Located 138 miles north of Sacramento, the city's roots are as a railr ...

, he was drafted by the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

in the 4th round (92nd overall) of the 1979 MLB Draft and played in the minor leagues, starting with the

Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Basebal ...

Walla Walla Padres The Walla Walla Padres were the primary name of a minor league baseball team in the northwest United States, located in Walla Walla, Washington. Named after their parent club, the Padres were members of the Class A short-season Northwest League for ...

, for eight years before being sent to the Padres.

Major league career

On September 15, 1996, Parent's home run off of Detroit Tigers pitcher

Todd Van Poppel Todd Matthew Van Poppel (born December 9, 1971) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Oakland Athletics (, –), Detroit Tigers (1996), Texas Rangers (, –), Pittsburgh Pirates (1998), Chicago Cubs (–), and Cincinn ...

was the Orioles' 241st of the year, surpassing the record of 240, set by the 1961 New York Yankees. Parent would make his first and only playoff appearance with the Orioles in 1996, who made it all the way to the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

Championship Series. Parent's best offensive season would come in 1995 when he played for the Pittsburgh Pirates before being traded back to the Chicago Cubs. During this season he played in 81 Games, and had 265 At Bats, 62 Hits, 30 Runs, 11 Doubles, 18 Home Runs, 38 RBI, while Hitting .234 and Slugging .479. In 13 seasons he played in 474 Games and had 1,303 At Bats, 112 Runs, 279 Hits, 50 Doubles, 53 Home Runs, 168 RBI, 3 Stolen Bases, 98 Walks, .214 Batting Average, .268 On-base percentage, .375 Slugging Percentage, 488 Total Bases, 12 Sacrifice Hits, 13 Sacrifice Flies and 8 Intentional Walks.

Managerial and coaching career

In 2000, Parent was named manager of the

Lancaster JetHawks The Lancaster JetHawks were a baseball team located in Lancaster, California. They were named for the city's association with the aerospace industry and played their home games at The Hangar. From 1996 to 2020, they were members of Minor League ...

, Class A affiliate of the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

. Parent was also named California League Manager of the Year that season. In 2005, Parent was named the first-ever manager of the newly minted

Golden Baseball League The Golden Baseball League was an independent baseball league based in San Ramon, California, with teams located in the western United States, western Canada and northwest Mexico. The GBL was not affiliated with Major League Baseball or the orga ...

Chico Outlaws The Chico Outlaws were a professional baseball team based in Chico, California, in the United States. The Outlaws were a member of the Northern Division of the independent North American League, which is not affiliated with either Major League Ba ...

and took his team to the league championship in 2007. After the team won the title, he retired from professional baseball. On December 15, 2009, the Philadelphia Phillies named Parent manager of the

Lakewood BlueClaws The Jersey Shore BlueClaws (formerly Lakewood BlueClaws) are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Lakewood, New Jersey, and are named for their locat ...

, the franchise's Class A affiliate in the

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

. On November 22, 2010, the Philadelphia Phillies named Parent manager of the

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, the franchise's Class AA affiliate in the Eastern League
The Official Site of Minor League Baseball
On October 31, 2011, the Chicago White Sox named Parent bench coach under manager Robin Ventura. On August 25, 2013, Parent was ejected from the Rangers-White Sox game during the pregame line up exchanges at home plate. On October 2, 2015, the Chicago White Sox relieved Parent of his duties. On January 11, 2016, the

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

named Parent manager of the

Arkansas Travelers The Arkansas Travelers, also known informally as The Travs, are a Minor League Baseball team based in North Little Rock, Arkansas. The Travelers are affiliated with the Seattle Mariners as members of the Texas League. History The team succeeded ...

, the franchise’s Class AA affiliate in the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

. On September 20, 2016, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim announced a two-year player development agreement with the Class AA

Mobile BayBears The Mobile BayBears were a Minor League Baseball team based in Mobile, Alabama, United States. The team, which played in the Southern League, served as the Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres (1997–2006), Arizona Diamondbacks (2007–2 ...

of the Southern League. Parent would not be retained for the 2017 season.

Miscellaneous

Parent was named MVP of the 1987-1988 Dominican Winter League while playing for the

Estrellas Orientales Estrellas Orientales (English: Eastern Stars), also known as Estrellas de Oriente, is a baseball team in the Dominican Winter League. Based in San Pedro de Macorís, the team has historically struggled, winning championships only in 1936, 1954, 19 ...

. Parent’s son Nick was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 36th round of the 2013 MLB June Amateur Draft from California State University Monterey Bay. On September 24, 2015, Nick was released by the

Great Falls Voyagers The Great Falls Voyagers are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Great Falls, Montana, and play their home games at Cente ...

, the Chicago White Sox’ Advanced Rookie affiliate in the Pioneer League.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parent, Mark 1961 births Living people Sportspeople from Ashland, Oregon Baseball players from Oregon San Diego Padres players Texas Rangers players Baltimore Orioles players Chicago Cubs players Pittsburgh Pirates players Detroit Tigers players Philadelphia Phillies players Chicago White Sox coaches Grays Harbor Loggers players Walla Walla Padres players Reading Phillies managers Rochester Red Wings players Oklahoma City 89ers players Las Vegas Stars (baseball) players Reno Silver Sox players Amarillo Gold Sox players Salem Redbirds players Beaumont Golden Gators players Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball catchers