The winter meetings will conclude Thursday with the annual Rule 5 draft. For those who find themselves craving even more baseball content, MLB Network will air the latest in its excellent "Presents" series on Thursday night at 8 p.m. ET. This time, the subject is longtime outfielder Dave Parker.
For those who -- for whatever reason -- aren't familiar with Parker, he enjoyed a distinguished career that stretched across 19 seasons and six teams, including most famously the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Oakland Athletics. He hit 339 home runs and finished with a 121 OPS+ and 40 wins above replacement. He also won the 1978 MVP Award; made seven All-Star Games; and was a three-time Gold Glove winner and three-time Silver Slugger winner. In other words, Parker could really play -- even if he's fallen short of induction into Cooperstown.
The documentary, which is narrated by Chuck D, touches on Parker's career, of course -- including the ire he received for being outspoken and well-compensated -- and goes beyond the playing field. There's coverage of Parker's role in the Pittsburgh drug trials, and how he used that experience to inform his late-career role as a mentor to younger players. Additionally, the film looks at Parker's current life, as he and his wife Kellye navigate his Parkinson's disease at the age of 68.
As is always the case with the "Presents" series, the production quality is higher and there are a number of original interviews with former teammates and contemporaries. This particular edition includes interviews with Barry Larkin and Eric Davis, as well as Gary Sheffield, "Mean" Joe Greene, Tony La Russa, and Phil Garner, among others.
The official name of the program is "MLB Network Presents: The Cobra at Twilight."