WASCO, Calif. -- Former catcher for the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford baseball team Austin Parent has signed a professional contract to play for the Wasco Reserves of the Pecos League.
"Austin had one of the best careers in recent memory at UPB," Pitt-Bradford Head Coach Zach Foster said. "This has set him up nicely to sign with Wasco in the Pecos League to continue his baseball career at the next level. He has the tools to be a good player at that level, which will hopefully springboard him to get noticed by a bigger independent league and eventually work his way into affiliated baseball. Congrats to A.P. and his family on a great accomplishment, yet again. Wasco is fortunate to have him."
The Wasco Reserves will play its franchise's first season in 2019 as a Pecos League expansion team.
The Pecos League is an independent baseball league which operates in cities in desert mountain regions throughout California, New Mexico, Southern Arizona, Kansas, West Texas and Southern Colorado. Pecos Teams play in cities that do not have Major or Minor League Baseball teams and is not affiliated with either.
The Pecos League has promoted 412 players to higher independent and affiliated teams from 2010-2018. Players are signed from Pecos Spring League, Hudson River League, Pecos League Tryout Camps, and Major League Baseball Scout Referrals.
According to the official league website, 10 Pecos League alums are currently playing in Major League systems.
A four-year starter for the Panthers and 2019 graduate, Parent hit .384 with 18 home runs, 115 RBIs and 116 runs scored as a Panther. His junior season, he put together one of the best years, not only in Panther history but around the nation. The Gilbert, Ariz., native led the nation with a .496 batting average and a .616 on-base percentage, while also breaking the single-season school record with nine homers. Fittingly, he was named the 2018 Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Player of the Year, D3Baseball and American Baseball Coaches Association First Team All-American.
To learn more or follow the Wasco Reserves this season, click here.