FORMER WAYNE HS STANDOUT LED SOUTH BEND

Another home series for the Fort Wayne TinCaps brought area native to Parkview Field. Bluffton native Justin Parker, a graduate of Wayne High School, returned to his old stomping grounds the weekend of May 15th as the TinCaps hosted the South Bend Silver Hawks (Class-A Arizona Diamondbacks) in a two-game series in downtown Fort Wayne.

Saturday’s game at Parkview Field began at 4:05pm while first pitch on Sunday started at 3:05pm.

Parker, 22, was an All-State selection his senior year at Wayne, hitting 498 with six home runs and 22 stolen bases. He went on to play three seasons at Wright State University, where he earned First Team All-Horizon League honors in 2008.

Parker was selected by the Diamondbacks in the sixth round of last year’s draft. He is off to a strong start with South Bend, hitting 313 through 27 games as the team’s primary third baseman.

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“As a member of the community, I’m proud to have these local players coming back home to Parkview Field,” TinCaps president Mike Nutter said. “It’s been fun to watch the fans root for their local guys while staying behind the TinCaps at the same time.”

Parker is the older brother of Jarrod Parker, the Diamondbacks’ first round pick in the 2007 draft from Norwell High School. Jarrod Parker breezed through four starts with Advanced-A Visalia to open this season and was promoted to Double-A Mobile in early May, where he is 1-2 with a 2.93 ERA in three starts. Baseball America rates the younger Parker as the top prospect in the Arizona organization.