Kevin Parada Explained

Kevin Parada
Team:New York Mets
Position:Catcher
Birth Date:3 August 2001
Birth Place:Pasadena, California, U.S.
Bats:Right
Throws:Right

Kevin John Parada (born August 3, 2001) is an American baseball catcher in the New York Mets organization.

Amateur career

Parada attended Loyola High School in Los Angeles, California. He finished his high school career with a .390 batting average, nine home runs, 66 RBIs, and 24 doubles.[1] He was considered a top prospect for the 2020 Major League Baseball draft, but went unselected, and enrolled at Georgia Tech to play college baseball.[2]

Parada was instantly put into the starting lineup at catcher as a freshman in 2021.[3] Over 52 games, he slashed .318/.370/.550 with nine home runs and 42 RBIs alongside twenty doubles which led the Atlantic Coast Conference, earning Freshman All-American honors.[4] Parada played nine games in the Cape Cod Baseball League with the Chatham Anglers over the summer of 2021.[5] [6] He was also named to the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team with whom he spent part of the summer.[7] [8] Parada entered the 2022 season as a top prospect for the upcoming draft.[9] [10] [11] On March 1, 2022, he was named the National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper after a week in which he went 12-21 with five home runs and 17 RBIs.[12] [13] On March 29, in a 17-3 win versus the Charleston Southern Buccaneers, Parada had his first ever two-home run game.[14] After he hit his 26th home run of the season, he set the Georgia Tech single season home run record, breaking the previous record set by Anthony Maisano in 1990.[15] Parada ended the season having played in sixty games, compiling a .361/.453/.709 slash line with 26 home runs and 88 RBIs.[16] Following the season's end, he traveled to San Diego where he participated in the Draft Combine.[17]

Professional career

The New York Mets selected Parada in the first round with the 11th overall selection of the 2022 Major League Baseball draft.[18] He signed with the team for $5 million.[19]

Parada made his professional debut with the Rookie-level Florida Complex League Mets and was promoted to the St. Lucie Mets of the Single-A Florida State League after three games.[20] Over 13 games between the two teams, he hit .275 with one home run and eight RBIs.[21] Parada was assigned to the Brooklyn Cyclones of the High-A South Atlantic League to open the 2023 season.[22] He briefly played for St. Lucie, and was promoted to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies of the Double-A Eastern League in late August.[23] Over 105 games, he slashed .248/.324/.428 with 14 home runs and 54 RBIs.[24] He was selected to play in the Arizona Fall League with the Glendale Desert Dogs.[25] Parada was assigned to Binghamton to open the 2024 season.[26]

Personal life

Parada's mother, Darlene, played college softball at Woodbury University.[27]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Pasadena's Parada Hopes to be Selected in MLB Draft. Brian. Reed-Baiotto. June 9, 2020. Hughes News Online.
  2. Web site: Best players not taken in abbreviated 2020 MLB draft. June 12, 2020. ESPN.
  3. Web site: Keeping tabs: College baseball teams relying on Southern California connection. Eric. Sondheimer. March 29, 2021. Los Angeles Times.
  4. Web site: Parada named Freshman All-American. June 9, 2021. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets Athletics.
  5. Web site: Kevin Parada . pointstreak.com . July 16, 2022.
  6. Web site: 3 non-COVID factors contribute to 'crazy' shake-ups in 2021 Cape Cod baseball rosters. Adam. Cole. July 22, 2021. Cape Cod Times.
  7. Web site: TEAM USA Collegiate National Team rosters. Tim. Hayes. Bristol Herald Courier. 7 July 2021 .
  8. Web site: Parada Selected to 2021 Collegiate National Team. June 18, 2021. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets Athletics.
  9. Web site: High expectations again for Georgia Tech baseball as new season begins. Ken. Sugiura. February 17, 2022. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  10. Web site: Kevin Parada Is the Latest Star in Georgia Tech's Catching Pipeline. Teddy. Cahill. March 30, 2022. Baseball America.
  11. Web site: Kevin Parada chasing greatness for Georgia Tech. Ken. Sugiura. April 22, 2022. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  12. Web site: Kevin Parada named national player of week for Georgia Tech. Ken. Sugiura. March 1, 2022. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  13. Web site: Georgia Tech's Kevin Parada spent the offseason adding strength, and now he's powering up MLB Draft boards. Maria. Torres. March 4, 2022. The Athletic.
  14. Web site: Georgia Tech ends four-game slide as Kevin Parada has career game. Ken. Sugiura. March 30, 2022. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  15. Web site: Kevin Parada sets school home-run record as Georgia Tech sweeps Pitt. Ken. Sugiura. May 23, 2022. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  16. News: Georgia Tech's Kevin Parada named finalist for Golden Spikes Award . The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Sugiura . Ken .
  17. Web site: Everything you need to know: Draft Combine . .
  18. News: Georgia Tech's Kevin Parada taken 11th overall by Mets . The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Sugiura . Ken .
  19. Web site: Mets make major deal to sign first round draft pick Kevin Parada .
  20. Web site: Mets Minors Recap: Kevin Parada Doubles in Debut | Metsmerized Online . 20 August 2022 .
  21. Web site: Kevin Parada Stats, Fantasy & News .
  22. Web site: Where the Mets' Top 30 prospects are starting season . .
  23. Web site: Mets Promote Catcher Kevin Parada to Double-A Binghamton . 2024-03-19 . MiLB.com . en.
  24. Web site: Postins . Matthew . 2023-09-23 . Mets Sending Top Prospect to AFL . 2024-03-19 . Sports Illustrated New York Mets News, Analysis and More . en.
  25. Web site: Here are the 2023 Arizona Fall League rosters . 2024-03-19 . MLB.com . en.
  26. Web site: Where the Guardians' Top 30 prospects are starting the season . 2024-05-17 . MLB.com . en.
  27. Web site: Parada joins Classic parade. Jeff. Dahn. July 26, 2019. Perfect Game USA.