Mets sign first-round pick Kevin Parada

The New York Mets have reached a deal with 11th overall pick Kevin Parada, MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis reports. Parada will receive $5,019,735, an overslot bonus that exceeds the recommended $4,780,700 price for the 11th selection.

It was perhaps a slight surprise that Parada was still available when the Mets were on the board, as pundits had the catcher solidly within the top 10 on pre-draft rankings. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel had the catcher as the fourth-best prospect in the entire draft class, while Fangraphs, Baseball America and Pipeline all rated Parada sixth. The Athletic’s Keith Law was right behind in slotting Parada seventh.

Defense could be the reason for Parada’s drop, as there is some question whether or not he’ll be able to stick behind the plate, or if he could become a first baseman or even DH-only player. The onus would then be on Parada to hit well enough for such a role, though there is broad consensus that Parada is one of the best hitters of the 2022 class, with Pipeline and BA each going into the 60-grades on his power and hit tools. Parada is an all-fields hitter who consistently makes hard contact and also developed more power over his time at Georgia Tech, all while using a unique batting stance.

When the Mets and 10th overall pick Kumar Rocker didn’t reach an agreement last year, New York earned the 11th pick in this year’s draft as compensation. As a result, the Mets had both the 11th and 14th overall selections on this year’s board, and both players have already been signed. Since 14th overall pick Jett Williams signed a below-slot deal, the Mets ended up signing Parada and Williams for a total of $8,919,735 — less than the $9,024,500 combined slot prices for the two picks.