Timothy Ryan Parker (born February 23, 1993) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a center-back for Major League Soccer club St. Louis City.
Early career
Parker played his high school soccer at Hicksville High School, serving as team captain for his final two seasons. During his senior season, Parker scored 25 goals and had eight assists, earning him numerous accolades, including being named the 2010–11 Gatorade New York Boys Soccer Player of the Year.
He played four seasons of college soccer at St. John's University. He made a total of 79 appearances for the Red Storm and tallied four goals and four assists. He helped St. John's win the 2011 Big East Conference Men's Soccer Tournament and qualify for the NCAA Tournament from 2011 to 2013. He captained the Red Storm for his senior season. He made the 2011 Big East All-Freshman team, 2012 All-Big East 2nd team , and the 2013 and 2014 All-Big East 1st teams. Parker also made the 2012 and 2013 NSCAA All-Region 1st team and the 2014 NSCAA All-Region 3rd team.
While at St. John's, he also played in the Premier Development League for the Long Island Rough Riders and appeared for the Brooklyn Italians in the National Premier Soccer League in 2013.
Professional career
Vancouver Whitecaps
On January 15, 2015, Parker was selected 13th overall in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft by the Vancouver Whitecaps. On March 30, he made his professional debut for Vancouver's USL affiliate club Whitecaps FC 2 in a 4–0 defeat to Seattle Sounders FC 2. Parker made his debut for the Whitecaps first team, as well as MLS debut, on May 2, coming on as a late substitute in a 0–0 draw with Cascadia Cup rivals Portland Timbers. He made his first start for the Whitecaps in their next match, a 3–0 win against the Philadelphia Union. On August 5, he scored in his CONCACAF Champions League debut against Cascadia Cup rivals the Seattle Sounders. Parker made four appearances and scored one goal during the CCL group stage as the Whitecaps finished last in their group. In Canadian Championship play, Parker started all four of Vancouver's matches. On August 26, he scored in the second leg of the final against the Montreal Impact, helping Vancouver win their first championship 4–2 on aggregate. He made 15 appearances in MLS regular season play, helping the Whitecaps finish 2nd in the Western Conference and qualify for the playoffs. Parker was part of a Vancouver defense that allowed 36 goals during the season, tied for the fewest in the league. Vancouver's first opponent in the playoffs was Portland, and despite Parker playing every minute of both legs, the Whitecaps would lose 2–0 on aggregate to the eventual MLS Cup champion Timbers.
Parker and Vancouver opened the 2016 season on March 6 with a 3–2 loss to the Impact. On June 29, 2016, Parker scored in his second straight Canadian Championship final, giving the Whitecaps a 2–0 lead in the match and 2–1 aggregate lead. Vancouver gave up a goal in five minutes into stoppage time to Will Johnson, leveling the aggregate score at 2–2 and giving Toronto FC the win on away goals. Parker ended the 2016 MLS season with 29 appearances. However, it was a poor season for the Whitecaps, finishing 8th in the conference and missing out on the playoffs. In Champions League play, Parker made three appearances in the group stage, helping Vancouver finish top of their group.
The first match of the 2017 season for the Whitecaps came on February 22 in the Champions League knockout stage, a 1–1 draw with the New York Red Bulls in leg 1 of the quarterfinals. Parker played in all 4 of Vancouver's CCL games in 2017, helping the Whitecaps reach the semifinals, where they lost to Tigres 4–1 on aggregate. Vancouver and Parker opened the 2017 MLS season on March 5 with a 0–0 draw against Philadelphia. On May 20, he scored his first career MLS goal in a 2–0 victory against Sporting Kansas City. Parker ended the regular season with 32 appearances, one goal and one assist, helping the Whitecaps finish 3rd in the Western Conference and qualify for the playoffs. In the first round of the playoffs, Parker had an assist as Vancouver defeated the San Jose Earthquakes 5–0. He started both legs of the conference semifinals, a 2–0 aggregate loss to the Seattle Sounders.