She never knew when the phone would ring, but there was almost no doubt it would come. Betty Ann, the mother of LSU pitcher Parker Bugg, always dreaded the phone call from her husband. She just knew the ambush of questions was coming.
Day or night, Special Agent Steven Bugg of the United States Secret Service would make the call to see how Parker played. No matter if he was across the country or even in a foreign country like Saudi Arabia, Steven found a way to make the call. Many times it wasn’t easy. In the middle of the night, he made trips to the U.S. Embassy or anywhere else with access to a telephone to get the report.
“Sometimes I knew he was out of the country and I thought there is no way he is going to call,” Betty Ann said. “Sure enough, I’d get a phone call from halfway around the world. He’d want to know everything about the game.”
At the games, the parents around her knew once the phone rang that it was Steven. Betty Ann did not look forward to the phone call, though, because she had to rattle off details of almost every pitch. If Parker gave up a hit, Steven wanted to know where the ball was hit, what was the count, where in the order it was. He was completely invested in Parker’s game.
When Steven made the first call, Betty Ann was clueless in the reporting that her husband wanted. She went from a casual fan to a coach in the stands, scoring the game and meticulously writing every detail her husband would want to know. If Steven would call after Parker’s games, she was well-prepared to deliver a summary.
“I knew she hated it,” Steven said. “I had to know everything about the game, though. I always wanted to be a part of the experience even if I couldn’t be there. It was important for me to still know what was going on.”
Steven didn’t limit the fun to Betty Ann, though; Parker would get a phone call from his father after the games to go over everything.
“I always knew the phone call was coming after the game, but I appreciated it,” Parker said. “Even if he wasn’t able to see me in person, he still knew what was going on. We would talk about everything in the game and go over what I could have done better.”
When he was in town, Steven worked with Parker five to six days a week. The former University of Louisville pitcher worked with his son in the backyard, the garage and the indoor batting cages. When Steven was out on assignment, Betty Ann would take Parker to Frozen Ropes indoor cages to throw him batting practice.
“We were there so much that people actually thought I worked there,” Betty Ann said.
“They would ask me questions and I just had to tell them I didn’t work there. Steven and I just did what any parents do for their children to see them succeed.”
Now, Parker – a junior relief pitcher for the Tigers – has made the most of his opportunity in Baton Rouge. Currently, he is in line for the Tigers’ set-up job out of the bullpen. During his sophomore campaign, he made 26 appearances, tied for third-most on the team. His 1.72 ERA and three saves last season placed him in a position to make significant contributions again this year.
Parker’s most important performance of his career may have come last season in the NCAA Super Regional. With UL-Lafayette mounting a comeback, Bugg closed the door on the Ragin’ Cajuns and retired three batters in order to set up a walk-off win in Game 1 of the series.
That performance, though, was not reported over a telephone while Steven was across the country or world. Now retired from the Secret Service, Steven is able to watch every LSU game from either the Buggs’ home in San Diego or in person, wherever the Tigers play. The Bugg family makes it to at least one series every month and every postseason game.
“The phone calls after the game never stop, but he is able to watch all of the games now,” Parker said. “I’m thankful that they are able to follow me and that they want to know about everything I do.”