SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — For years, the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF) has been empowering athletes with physical challenges to pursue their dreams. Now, one Division I college baseball player is proving just how far resilience, hard work, and the right support can take you.
Parker Byrd, a standout infielder for East Carolina University, who lost his right leg in a 2022 boating accident, is rewriting what’s possible on the baseball diamond. But it's been a lot of relearning these past three years.
“I had to relearn how to play without an ankle joint, which is pretty key to hitting and stuff,” Byrd told me. “I had to learn how to swing without that ankle movement.”
Baseball had been his life since the moment he could walk. But in an instant, everything changed.
“The driver put the boat in reverse and basically ran me over—hit both of my legs and my left hand as well,” Byrd recalled.
It was an emotional rollercoaster for the young athlete.
A month in the hospital, 22 surgeries, months of rehab, and a long emotional recovery. Still, he never gave up.
“So I just learned how to play baseball with just a prosthetic leg now,” Byrd said. That determination has made him one of the first-ever Division I players to compete with a prosthetic leg.
A big part of his journey has been the support of the Challenged Athletes Foundation in San Diego. In March 2023, CAF awarded Byrd his first grant, providing a prosthetic leg that truly fit and gave him the mobility he needed to keep chasing his dream.
Now, his newest prosthetic is being crafted in Mira Mesa by world-renowned prosthetist Peter Harsh, giving Byrd the tools to not only walk comfortably but to compete at the highest level of college baseball.
“Without these running legs and baseball legs that I have, there’s no way I’d be playing,” Byrd said. “I’m very blessed to have him in my life. I couldn’t imagine what I would do without this support.”
For Byrd, it’s more than a comeback story—it’s proof that perspective, perseverance, and the right community can turn tragedy into triumph.
