Home Turf: BHS Grad Drafted by the Houston Astros

After 18 years of rooting for the Rice Owls, Bellaire native Parker Smith joined their baseball team. Now, after three more years of perfecting his pitch, Parker has been drafted to another team he has supported since he could swing a bat: the Houston Astros.

Parker, who started playing baseball at age 4, says being drafted feels “surreal.” Prior to the draft, he says he had not talked much with the Astros; the phone call from his agent, which he received in his family living room on Monday, was totally unexpected. He accepted the offer right away, but waited to tell his parents, brother, and girlfriend until the announcement aired on TV a few minutes later. Parker’s mother Sandy, who knew the list of scouts Parker was in contact with, kept guessing teams. He told her it would just have to be a surprise.

“It hasn’t set in yet,” Parker said. “When the news came on the TV, my family was in the living room and there were just cheers of joy and laughter.”

Bellaire native Parker Smith has been playing baseball since the age of 4.

Sandy says, “We’re ecstatic. They weren’t on our radar based on who he had been talking to, but to have him at home with the Astros is the best of all worlds for us,” she said. “Being able to watch every home game at Rice, just three miles away, has been incredible. Now we just have to go a little further downtown.”

Parker played for the Rice Owls for three years, where he was coached by MLB veteran José Cruz Jr., who played in the Major Leagues for 12 years on various teams including the Astros and briefly served as assistant hitting coach for the Detroit Tigers. Parker attributes much of his achievement as a player to Cruz’s experience and coaching style. (Read more about José Cruz Jr., Parker Smith, and other Buzz-area Rice baseball players in From Little League to Rice by Jennifer Oakley, March 2022.) 

Tanner Fox, Jack Ben-Shoshan, and Parker Smith (from left) played Bellaire Little League together and went on to play together at Rice University. (Photo: hartphoto.com)

“He has a very pro-style way of managing everyone,” he said. 

Sandy says Parker and Cruz will “always be linked” in other ways, too: Both played ball at Bellaire High School (Parker graduated in 2021) and at Rice, and the game Parker pitched against Houston Christian University earned Cruz his first collegiate win.

But Cruz is not the only one who has helped Parker along the way; the fourth-round pick says the number of people who have had a big impact on his journey is “too many to count – the people who have know who they are. It’s just been such a culmination of so many important people, from Little League to now.”

The Bellaire Little League 10U District Team is pictured here in 2013 after they won the District 16 tournament. Parker Smith was on this team along with Jack Ben-Shoshan, also part of the Rice baseball team.

Sandy has been an Astros fan since the original José Cruz (Cruz’s dad) was on the roster; she attended their last game at the Astrodome and their first at Enron Field. The Smith family goes to at least a few home games every season, and Parker’s father, Tab, took him to see them play in the 2017 World Series. Sandy says Parker’s first Astros game, though, predates the team’s winning streak – a baby photo revealed he made his first trip to Minute Maid Park when he was just two or three months old.

Parker is excited for the opportunity to work with the Astros. He says he is looking forward to learning from other players – and putting on his cap for the first time.

“I’ve made my case the last three years, and I hope that bodes well for the future,” he said.  “Hopefully my family will be able to watch me play with them one day.”

Editor’s note: Read more about José Cruz Jr., Parker Smith, and other Buzz-area Rice baseball players in From Little League to Rice: José Cruz Jr.’s team is at home by Jennifer Oakley, March 2022.