Jays' Parker hitting the ball far AND trying out a new position in Fall League

PEORIA, Ariz. -- Peoria Javelinas right-hander Kiefer Lord (Orioles) left a 96-mph fastball over the heart of the plate for Mesa Solar Sox left fielder Aaron Parker on Wednesday afternoon, and he took advantage. The Blue Jays prospect crushed it for a 451-foot home run to left-center field, tied for the fourth-longest in the Arizona Fall League season, powering Mesa to a 14-5 victory. 

Parker's blast left his bat at 108.2 mph and showcased what he does at his best. He focuses on driving balls in the air to his pull side, and he hits balls harder than most players in the Minors. He has been one of the most dangerous hitters on the developmental circuit, slashing .357/.481/.524 with two homers in 11 games to earn a berth in Sunday's Fall Stars Game.

While Parker is building on the momentum he generated from a productive season at Double-A (.253/.347/.467 with 19 homers and 12 steals in 87 games), he's doing it at a position that is foreign to him. Before he played three games in left field during the final two weeks of the Eastern League regular season, he never had spent any time in the outfield. He has made six of his AFL starts in left, four at DH and one behind the plate.

Parker joked that his older brother, Ben, played outfield in college at William & Mary, so he figured that it couldn't be too difficult. It's unclear how much he'll balance playing left field with catching going forward, and he's trying to learn as much as he can as quickly as possible. 

"2026 is my first time playing outfield," Parker said. "It's still new. Flyball goes up, your heart races a little bit, but you try to keep your wits about you. Stay under control out there and just be an athlete. ​

"Whatever will potentially get me in the lineup is what I'll do. Defense is a huge priority. I'll try to be a skilled player everywhere on the field and just add another tool to the bag."

A 2024 sixth-round pick from UC Santa Barbara, Parker caught the first pitchers drafted in 2025 (Tyler Bremner, Angels) and 2026 (Jackson Flora, Giants). He has solid arm strength but still needs more polish as a receiver and blocker. ​

Parker's right-handed power is the most attractive part of his game and will be his ticket to Toronto. His 19 homers ranked seventh among catchers at Double-A and Triple-A this season and his 90th percentile exit velocities averaged 107.9 mph, which fit in the top 1 percent in the Minors. There's nothing subtle about his approach.

"I just hit it as hard as I can," Parker said. "If you're not erring on the side of being aggressive and trying to get the head out and hitting the good stuff, it can be challenging at times. This year I just leaned into, regardless of the adversity or how good the arms are, just trying to get my best swing off as many times as possible and hopefully good outcomes happen."

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While in Arizona, Parker has challenged himself to carry his aggression at the plate to the basepaths. Though he's a well-below-average runner out of the batter's box and only occasionally shows average speed once underway, he has gone 8-for-8 stealing bases after swiping 12 during the regular season. 

"If the transition to the outfield is a little bit more permanent, I think it would be really important to steal more bases and try to flash the speed a little bit," Parker said. "So I'm definitely coming out here and testing the spectrum of how many bases I can possibly take as a runner."