Easily dismissed NY Mets first-round pick finally shows flashes of his potential

Back in 2022, the New York Mets had two first-round picks. With both of these picks being in the top 15, it was a way for the Mets to re-stock the farm after the disaster that was the Brodie Van Wagenen era. Most fans remember who the Mets selected with the 14th overall pick, which was Jett Williams, the top prospect in the Mets' system, according to MLB Pipeline. However, many forget that the Mets drafted Kevin Parada with the 11th overall pick.

The reason for the lack of hype surrounding Parada has been his struggles since joining the Mets' system. Over his four seasons in the minors, he's slashed .231/.318/.399 with 36 home runs and 127 RBI. These struggles have caused him to plummet down the prospect list, being left off the MLB Pipeline Top 30 Mets prospect list for 2025. However, his recent play has inspired hope that he can turn it around.

How Kevin Parada is finally living up to his potential

When looking at his season as a whole, it looks like another loss season. Another year when he struggles against Double-A pitching. However, if you look at his performance in the month of June, you start to see the players the Mets thought they were getting. Since the calendar flip, he has a slash line of .371/.439/.800 with four home runs and 10 RBIs. Over his last 21 games, he has a batting average of .309 with seven home runs and 16 RBIs.

There are several sides that this recent hot streak could be the season he finally breaks out. Even with his struggles this season, he has a wRC+ of 109, the best mark since posting a 121 wRC+ in 2023 when he was playing with the Brooklyn Cyclones in High-A. This means Parada has been nine percent better than an average hitter. With his bat being the reason he was drafted, this is a very encouraging sign.

Parada also has put up good numbers against left-handed pitchers. In 23 games against lefties he has a slash line of .300/.361/.600 with two home runs and four RBI. Being able to hit against lefties like that is very valuable to any team. It gives the manager more flexibility to work with and allows him to play the matchup and put the team in the best position to win.

While Parada has been disappointing throughout his Mets tenure, these are encouraging signs that he can turn it around. He's still only 23-years-old, meaning there is a lot of time for him to develop. While we love it when prospects break out in their late teens and early twenties, that's more of the exception and not the rule, especially when it comes to catchers. With so much responsibility, it often takes catchers a little longer to develop than other players. Parada could just be another example of a late bloomer.

While Parada still has a lot of work to do to recapture that top prospect status he had a few years ago, this recent stretch is encouraging. The future is still bright despite the struggles he's had in his career.