Gerardo Enrique Parra (born May 6, 1987) is a Venezuelan former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

and current first base coach for the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

and

, as well for the

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They h ...

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

(NPB). Parra is a two-time

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual Fielding (baseball), fielding performances. It is awar ...

winner and won the

2019 World Series The 2019 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2019 Major League Baseball season, 2019 season. The 115th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League champion 2019 ...

as a member of the Nationals.

Career

Arizona Diamondbacks

On May 13, 2009, the Diamondbacks promoted Parra to the major leagues from the Double A

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 ...

when

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...

Conor Jackson Conor Sims Jackson (born May 7, 1982) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and left fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 2005 and 2011 for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Oakland Athletics, and Boston Red Sox. ...

was placed on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 Major League Baseball season, 2019 season, it was known as the disabl ...

. He was inserted into the starting lineup the same day, and in his first Major League at bat he became the 100th player in

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

history to hit a home run in his first at bat. Parrawin

In his first five games he had at least one RBI, becoming the second player since

Mike Lansing Michael Thomas Lansing (born April 3, 1968) is an American former Major League Baseball second baseman who played for the Montreal Expos, Colorado Rockies, and the Boston Red Sox between 1993 and 2001. During his playing days, he had the nicknam ...

(1993) in the last 30 years to accomplish this feat. Parra was named NL Rookie of the Month for May and reached base in each of his first 17 games. In 2011, Parra broke out batting .292 with 8

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s and 46

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

. Not only did he do well offensively, he also established himself as a threat with his powerful throwing arm, throwing out runners on various occasions. He was a very underrated player in 2011 as he was a key ingredient in leading the Diamondbacks turnaround. After an outstanding season defensively Parra was awarded the 2011 National League Left Fielder

Gold Glove award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual Fielding (baseball), fielding performances. It is awar ...

on November 1, 2011. In an 18-inning game on August 24–25, 2013 at the Philadelphia Phillies, Parra collected a career-high five

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

. The teams drew a combined 28

bases on balls A base on balls (BB), better known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches during a plate appearance that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The bas ...

, a National League record. The Diamondbacks' 18 walks tied the National League mark. The game lasted seven hours and six minutes, the longest in franchise history for both clubs. Parra won his second career Gold Glove Award following the 2013 season.

Milwaukee Brewers

On July 31, 2014, the Diamondbacks traded Parra to the

in exchange for minor leaguers Mitch Haniger and Anthony Banda. Parra hit between Arizona and Milwaukee .261 with 9 home runs and 40 RBIs. Parra entered the 2015 season as Milwaukee's

fourth outfielder In baseball, a utility player or utility man is a player who has the ability to play more than one position in the field and is primarily used as a substitute. The term super utility player may be used to refer to a player who can play all or mos ...

Baltimore Orioles

On July 31, 2015, the Brewers traded Parra to the

for

Zach Davies Zachary Ryan Davies (born February 7, 1993) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, San Diego Padres, Chicago Cubs, and Arizona Diamondba ...

. After a slow start with the Orioles, Parra tied a career-high in hits with five on August 16 in an 18–2 victory over the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

Colorado Rockies

On January 19, 2016, Parra signed a three-year contract with the

. In his first season as a Rockie, he spent time on the disabled list. He played in 102 games, hitting just .253/.271/.399 with a strikeout to walk ratio of 73/9. He had career highs in average (.309) and RBIs (71) the following season. On April 13, 2018, Parra was suspended for four games due to his involvement in a brawl that occurred with the Padres two days prior. He ended his three-year contract hitting .284/.342/.372 with 6 home runs and 53 runs batted in. On October 30, 2018, the Rockies declined the 2019 option on Parra's contract, instead paying him a $1.5 million

buyout In finance, a buyout is an investment transaction by which the ownership equity, or a controlling interest of a company, or a majority share of the capital stock of the company is acquired. The acquirer thereby "buys out" the present equity holde ...

and making him a free agent.

San Francisco Giants

On February 12, 2019, Parra signed a minor league deal with the

that included an invitation to

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

. In 30 major league games for the Giants, he batted .198/.278/.267. He was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

on May 3, 2019.

Washington Nationals

On May 9, 2019, Parra signed a one-year major league contract with the

. His first hit with the team was a go-ahead grand slam in a May 11 game against the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. In a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on August 3, Parra was called upon to pitch in the 8th inning with the Nationals trailing 11–4. He gave up 5 runs on 1 hit and 4 walks before being replaced by another position player, Brian Dozier, and the Nationals eventually lost 18–7. The 25 career pitches thrown by Parra are the most without retiring a batter since at least 2000. In 2019 with the Nationals he batted .250/.300/.447. Between the Giants and the Nationals combined, in 2019 he batted .234/.293/.391 with nine home runs and 48 RBIs in 274 at bats. During his time with the Nationals, at the suggestion of his children, Parra changed his walk-up music to the popular children's song "

Baby Shark "Baby Shark" () is a children's song associated with a dance involving hand movements dating back to the late 20th century. In 2016, "Baby Shark" became immensely popular when Pinkfong, a South Korean entertainment company, released a version ...

". This became a crowd favorite throughout the second half of 2019, as crowds at

Nationals Park Nationals Park is a baseball stadium along the Anacostia River in the Navy Yard (Washington, D.C.), Navy Yard neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It is the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Washington Nationals. Since its completion in 2008, it wa ...

began to sing along and do the accompanying motions whenever Parra came up to bat. Fans throughout the stadium were seen doing the "shark dance" when Parra was called up to bat in Game 4 of the

2019 National League Championship Series The 2019 National League Championship Series was a best-of-seven series in Major League Baseball’s 2019 postseason between the two winners of the 2019 National League Division Series, the third-seeded St. Louis Cardinals and the fourth-seeded ...

, and then again when Parra was called up to pinch-hit in Games 3, 4, and 5 of the

vs. the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

. The Nationals won the World Series in 7 games, their first in franchise history.

Yomiuri Giants

On November 20, 2019, Parra signed a one-year contract with the

. In 47 games with Yomiuri, Parra slashed .267/.305/.384 with 4 home runs and 13 RBI. On December 2, 2020, he became a free agent.

Washington Nationals (second stint)

On February 3, 2021, Parra signed a minor league deal to return to the Nationals. He was assigned to the Triple-A

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Fie ...

to begin the season. On June 20, Parra was selected to the active roster. On March 13, 2022, Parra re-signed with the Nationals on a minor league deal. He was released by the Nationals organization on May 1 without appearing in a major league game.

Post-playing career

Parra retired from professional baseball on May 8, 2022, and took a front office job with the Nationals. After the 2023 season, the Nationals named Parra their

first base coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Parra, Gerardo 1987 births Living people Águilas del Zulia players Albuquerque Isotopes players Arizona Diamondbacks players Baltimore Orioles players Colorado Rockies players Gold Glove Award winners Hartford Yard Goats players Leones del Caracas players Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball first basemen Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from Venezuela 21st-century Venezuelan sportsmen Milwaukee Brewers players Missoula Osprey players Mobile BayBears players Nippon Professional Baseball outfielders Baseball players from Zulia Reno Aces players Rochester Red Wings players San Francisco Giants players South Bend Silver Hawks players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in Japan Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Visalia Oaks players Washington Nationals players World Baseball Classic players of Venezuela Yomiuri Giants players 2009 World Baseball Classic players 2013 World Baseball Classic players