in right field …
In picking an all-time Dream Team of Mississippi-born major league players, there would be no debate about the right fielder. Dave Parker. The Grenada native, who passed away on Saturday at 74 after a long battle with Parkinson’s, is one of the most decorated players ever to come out of the state. Seven-time All-Star, three-time Gold Glove winner, three-time Silver Slugger winner, two-time batting champion, two-time World Series champ and one-time National League MVP. Drafted out of a Cincinnati high school by Pittsburgh in 1970, he played 19 years in the majors (1973-91) and batted .290 with 2,712 hits, 339 home runs, 1,493 RBIs and 154 stolen bases. A throw he made from right field in the 1979 All-Star Game is still talked about. He ranks No. 2 among Mississippi natives in career homers behind Ellis Burks (352 to 339) and first in RBIs, runs and doubles. “The Cobra” was a big man — 6 feet 5, 230 pounds in his prime — with a big personality, a clubhouse leader. In an mlb.com article about the origin of his iconic “Me and the Boys Boppin'” T-shirt, Parker is described as “colorful, endlessly quotable, don’t-turn-away-or-you’ll-miss-something-magical.” It wasn’t all rosy: There were weight problems, feuds with media and fans in Pittsburgh, the ’80s cocaine scandal. He is in both the Pirates and Cincinnati Reds Halls of Fame, but the BBWAA passed him over in National Baseball Hall of Fame balloting. He finally got in this past year, selected by one of the special committees, and is slated for formal induction next month. So sad that he won’t be there.