Here's what Bartlesville’s A.J. Parker and Caney Valley’s Jace Kaminska are up to
Two former high school athletic standouts from the Bartlesville area continue to make headlines in professional sports. The following is a pro report on these former area high school athletics greats.
A.J. Parker
Through mid-June, the Bartlesville High graduate appears to be an NFL free agent after the Carolina Panthers waived him on May 10.
Parker (5' 11", approximately 180 pounds) has three years of NFL experience at cornerback, including 17 regular season game appearances, including seven starts with the Detroit Lions.
He was part of the Lions' organization for two seasons (2021 and 2022), although he spent most of 2022 on the practice squad. As a rookie in 2021, he had played in 13 games, started seven of them and recorded 50 tackles (39 solo), one tackle for loss, one forced fumble and one interception.
The Lions waived him after the 2022 campaign, and he signed with the San Francisco 49ers. He remained with the 49ers through the end of training camp but suffered an injury in a preseason game and didn't make the 53-man regular-season roster.
After achieving an injury settlement with the 49ers, Parker spent part of the fall of 2023 healing and seeking a new team. The Panthers signed him during Thanksgiving week for their practice squad. They elevated him to one regular season game, where he made four tackles.
Carolina signed him after the season to a futures contract for 2024 but made him a free agent in May.
He excelled in three sports at Bartlesville and suited up for four seasons at Kansas State, the final three as a full-time starter.
Jace Kaminska
The former Caney Valley (Kan.) prep pitching legend — who once struck out a state-record 29 batters in a row — is currently with the Fresno (Calif.) Grizzlies, a Class A club in the Colorado Rockies organization.
Kaminska was the Rockies' 10-round draft pick in 2023.
Through 11 games this summer, the imposing (6-foot-2, 235 pounds) Kaminska has carved out a 3-2 record and an outstanding earned run average of 2.53 in 11 appearances and 57.0 innings. He racked up 69 strikeouts. The Grizzlies are well above .500.
Kaminska — a strong-armed right-hander — played collegiately at Wichita State and Nebraska.
This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Here's what these Bartlesville area alumni pro athletes are up to
