Brockport High School graduate Andy Parrino will be inducted into the Section V Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday, June 30, at 11:30 a.m. during a pre-game ceremony at Innovation Field (formerly Frontier Field).
Andy, the son of Tony and Sue Parrino, was raised with his siblings, Nathan and Allyn, in Brockport. Andy’s passion and natural talent for baseball began when he was just three years old. His love for the sport and his skills continued growing thanks to the support and encouragement of his family and coaches. Andy continued playing baseball through his adolescent years, into high school and college and eventually played professionally in Major League Baseball.
He began playing varsity baseball as an eighth grader in Brockport as an infielder. He was a member of the Section V Championship Team in 2003 and 2004, named the Section V Tournament MVP in 2004, Monroe County Player of the Year 2003 and 2004, and received All-County Honors from 2002 through 2004.
After graduating from Brockport High School in 2004, Andy went on to Le Moyne College in Syracuse, where his baseball career began to really take off. He was selected to the 2007 Louisville Slugger All-American Third Team. Le Moyne took first place in the 2007 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Tournament, and Andy was named the MAAC 2007 Baseball Player of the Year.
He was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 26th round of the 2007 draft, only the second position player to make it to MLB from Le Moyne College. Parrino became the first non-pitcher from the Rochester area to play in MLB since 1964 (Ken O’Dea of Lima). He was also the first Section V player to play Major League Baseball in over 80 years.
The launch of his professional baseball career took him from snowy upstate NY to sunny San Diego, California. He played for several minor league teams affiliated with the Padres franchise before being called up from AA San Antonio to make his Major League debut with the Padres in 2011.
In addition to the Padres, Parrino played for the Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers, and Chicago White Sox organizations during his career and for Team USA in the 2015 Pan American games.
After an injury leading to Tommy John surgery, Parrino retired from baseball in 2016. Andy lives in San Diego with his wife, Alexis, whom he met at a promotional event while he was playing for the Padres. She was a San Diego Charger Cheerleader and professional dancer. They have four children: sons Christian (CT) and Cashton (Cash), and daughters Eastyn and Halston. Parrino’s children are also very active with sports, and his youngest daughter, Halston, has just begun dancing.
Parrino and his family will return to Brockport at the end of June for his induction into the Section V Baseball Hall of Fame. He will be one of six Section V athletes inducted into the Hall of Fame that day.
As Parrino reflects on his lifelong experiences that led him to this honor, he credits his amazing coaches along the way, especially Brockport High School Coach Brian Jones, Coach T and Mrs. T (Tillinghaust) of The Battery, Dan Fichter of Wanna Get Fast, and his college coach Steve Owens.
“I am especially thankful to my parents for the strong work ethic they instilled in me, as I hope to instill this type of work ethic into my own children. My parents made so many sacrifices for me. My mom worked full-time and made sure she was at all my games. My dad worked overnights as a police officer, and with only a few hours of sleep, he would always get up and take me to my practices,” said Parrino.
The induction ceremony on June 30 at Innovation Field begins at 11:30 a.m. For more information on this event or for tickets, contact Billy Bowe of Section V Baseball at http://coachbowe@rochester.rr.com.
Andy doing some acrobatics during his time in Oakland.
Provided photos
