Lance Parrish

Born: 6/15/1956 in Clairton, PA, USA

MLB Debut: 1977-09-05 | Final Game: 1995-09-23

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'3" | Weight: 210 lbs

Full name: Lance Michael Parrish

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Biography

Lance Parrish, born in 1956, was a prominent figure in Major League Baseball who played from 1977 until his retirement in 1995. Known primarily for his role as a catcher, Parrish established himself as one of the leading power hitters of his era. Over the course of his 18-year career, he appeared in 1,988 games, amassing 1,782 hits, 324 home runs, and 1,070 RBIs. His batting average stood at .252, complemented by 28 stolen bases, showcasing a blend of power and speed that was unusual for a player in his position. Parrish was an eight-time All-Star, reflecting his consistent performance and impact on the field. He played during a transformative period in baseball, marked by the rise of power hitters and the evolution of catching as a position. Parrish's ability to contribute both offensively and defensively made him a valuable asset to every team he played for, including the Detroit Tigers, where he won a World Series title in 1984. His legacy as a strong, reliable catcher and a significant contributor to the game remains noteworthy in baseball history.

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
1988	7067	856	1782	305	27	324	1070	28	612	1527	0.252	0.313	0.440	0.753	6410.6

Career AVG .252 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .313 vs. league average .326 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .440 vs. league average .392 across their career seasons — +12.4% above league average.

Career OPS 0.753 vs. league average 0.718 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1977	DET	AL	12	46	10	9	2	0	3	7	0	5	12	0.196	—	—	—	—	-30.6
1978	DET	AL	85	288	37	63	11	3	14	41	0	11	71	0.219	.257 (-15%)	.323 (-21%)	.378 (+12%)	.702 (-3%)	-319.8
1979	DET	AL	143	493	65	136	26	3	19	65	6	49	105	0.276	.265 (+4%)	.329 (+4%)	.397 (+15%)	.727 (+10%)	989.0
1980	DET	AL	144	553	79	158	34	6	24	82	6	31	109	0.286	.264 (+8%)	.326 (avg)	.387 (+29%)	.714 (+15%)	1459.4
1981	DET	AL	96	348	39	85	18	2	10	46	2	34	52	0.244	.255 (-4%)	.320 (-3%)	.368 (+7%)	.688 (+2%)	113.4
1982	DET	AL	133	486	75	138	19	2	32	87	3	40	99	0.284	.261 (+9%)	.324 (+4%)	.388 (+36%)	.712 (+22%)	1937.6
1983	DET	AL	155	605	80	163	42	3	27	114	1	44	106	0.269	.260 (+3%)	.324 (-3%)	.389 (+24%)	.714 (+12%)	1063.7
1984	DET	AL	147	578	75	137	16	2	33	98	2	41	120	0.237	.259 (-9%)	.322 (-11%)	.384 (+15%)	.707 (+3%)	152.6
1985	DET	AL	140	549	64	150	27	1	28	98	2	41	90	0.273	.257 (+6%)	.323 (avg)	.390 (+23%)	.714 (+12%)	1184.2
1986	DET	AL	91	327	53	84	6	1	22	62	0	38	83	0.257	.257 (avg)	.325 (+4%)	.395 (+22%)	.720 (+14%)	881.4
1987	PHI	NL	130	466	42	114	21	0	17	67	0	47	104	0.245	.262 (-7%)	.331 (-5%)	.415 (-4%)	.746 (-5%)	-438.1
1988	PHI	NL	123	424	44	91	17	2	15	60	0	47	93	0.215	.254 (-16%)	.317 (-8%)	.377 (-2%)	.695 (-5%)	-407.5
1989	LAA	AL	124	433	48	103	12	1	17	50	1	42	104	0.238	.254 (-6%)	.319 (-4%)	.375 (+3%)	.694 (avg)	-33.8
1990	LAA	AL	133	470	54	126	14	0	24	70	2	46	107	0.268	.257 (+4%)	.324 (+4%)	.385 (+17%)	.710 (+11%)	1058.8
1991	LAA	AL	119	402	38	87	12	0	19	51	0	35	117	0.216	.255 (-15%)	.323 (-12%)	.384 (+1%)	.708 (-5%)	-424.4
1992	LAA	AL	24	83	7	19	2	0	4	11	0	5	22	0.229	.255 (-10%)	.322 (-16%)	.377 (+5%)	.699 (-5%)	-88.8
1992	SEA	AL	69	192	19	45	11	1	8	21	1	19	48	0.234	.255 (-8%)	.322 (-6%)	.377 (+13%)	.699 (+4%)	-88.8
1993	CLE	AL	10	20	2	4	1	0	1	2	1	4	5	0.200	—	—	—	—	0.0
1994	PIT	NL	40	126	10	34	5	0	3	16	1	18	28	0.270	.269 (avg)	.338 (+7%)	.424 (-10%)	.763 (-2%)	-4.8
1995	TOR	AL	70	178	15	36	9	0	4	22	0	15	52	0.202	.266 (-24%)	.337 (-21%)	.417 (-23%)	.755 (-22%)	-783.6

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
8	30	4	8	2	0	2	5	3	5	0.267

Playoff Batting by Year

Year	Round	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
1984	ALCS	DET	3	12	1	3	1	0	1	3	0	3	0.250
1984	WS	DET	5	18	3	5	1	0	1	2	3	2	0.278

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1B	30	24	185	6	4	23
C	1818	1715	9647	980	94	133
OF	6	4	8	0	0	0

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1977	DET	C	12	12	76	6	0	0
1978	DET	C	79	73	353	39	5	5
1979	DET	C	142	135	707	79	9	10
1980	DET	1B	5	5	42	1	1	7
1980	DET	C	121	114	557	66	6	8
1980	DET	OF	5	4	8	0	0	0
1981	DET	C	90	88	407	40	3	6
1982	DET	C	132	127	627	76	8	8
1982	DET	OF	1	0	0	0	0	0
1983	DET	C	131	126	695	73	4	8
1984	DET	C	127	123	720	67	7	11
1985	DET	C	120	117	695	53	5	9
1986	DET	C	85	82	483	48	6	5
1987	PHI	C	127	124	724	66	9	1
1988	PHI	1B	1	0	1	0	0	1
1988	PHI	C	117	114	639	73	9	11
1989	CAL	C	122	118	638	63	5	7
1990	CAL	1B	4	3	34	2	0	6
1990	CAL	C	131	125	760	88	6	15
1991	CAL	1B	3	1	12	0	0	0
1991	CAL	C	111	102	658	57	2	11
1992	CAL	C	22	21	107	8	3	2
1992	SEA	1B	16	14	93	3	2	9
1992	SEA	C	34	23	183	12	1	4
1993	CLE	C	10	7	47	10	3	1
1994	PIT	1B	1	1	3	0	1	0
1994	PIT	C	38	35	225	15	3	4
1995	TOR	C	67	49	346	41	0	7

Career Games by Position

Position	Games
Catcher	1820
First Base	30
Left Field	2
Right Field	4
Designated Hitter	121

Awards & Honors

Year	Award	Notes
1990	Silver Slugger	C
1986	Silver Slugger	C
1985	Gold Glove	C
1984	Gold Glove	C
1984	Player of the Week	Week of 1984-06-22
1984	Silver Slugger	C
1984	TSN All-Star	C
1983	Gold Glove	C
1983	Silver Slugger	C
1982	Silver Slugger	C
1982	TSN All-Star	C
1980	Silver Slugger	C
1979	Player of the Week	Week of 1979-06-01

Featured In Rankings

#18

Top 20 Catchers in History of MLB Baseball

Ranked 18 of 20

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Salary History

Year	Team	League	Salary
1995	TOR	AL	$290,000
1993	CLE	AL	$125,000
1993	PIT	NL	$209,000
1992	CAL	AL	$2,416,667
1991	CAL	AL	$2,416,667
1990	CAL	AL	$1,916,667
1989	CAL	AL	$1,000,000
1988	PHI	NL	$1,000,000
1987	PHI	NL	$1,000,000
1986	DET	AL	$850,000
1985	DET	AL	$766,667
Total Career Earnings			$11,990,668