Speed Of Parks Attractive To Bryant

Samuel Parks OF / Tabor Academy, MA / 2021

MARION, Ma. - Speed is one of the biggest tools in a player that the new coaching staff at Bryant University is looking for during recruitment.

Samuel Parks fits the bill.

The Tabor Academy junior has committed to the Northeast Conference school where the 5-8 155-pounder will bring with him 6.53 clocking in the 60.

“I went on a visit at the end of August and talked to them for a couple weeks after they hired a new staff,” Parks related. “They really like fast players.”

An offer from Maine, a visit to UMass and interest from Amherst, UConn, Merrimack and the Naval Academy were other options for the 54th-ranked 2021 player in New England.

“I was new to the scene, this was my first season of travel baseball,” Parks noted. “I was kind of nieve, I’d only played in town.”

It has been an eye-opening experience for Parks.

“I didn’t think I was that good, but I made varsity my freshman year at Tabor,” Parks said. “I played legion ball that summer and a teammate got me in contact with Team Boston. My coach, who is also my hitting coach, lives 20 minutes down the road. The coaches on my summer team (Jared Evans, Keith Forbes, Jeff Mejia) and my high school coach (Kenny Ackerman) really helped me out reaching out to college coaches. I don’t know if I could do this without them.”

Admittedly, the recruiting process did not go as expected for Parks.