Mets prospect Parada's MO: Replace sweet tooth with sweet swing

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Salted caramel ice cream was the hardest part. That, Kevin Parada said, “and anything lemon -- lemon bars, lemon cakes, stuff like that.”

Admittedly, Parada has a sweet tooth. He loves desserts. But over the course of last season at Double-A Binghamton, the Mets catching prospect and 2022 first-round Draft pick found himself gaining too much weight. He felt heavy, unathletic. So in the offseason, Parada decided to do something about it, dropping 15 pounds.

“I honestly just ate better and made a conscious effort to not snack as much,” he said. “That’s a big thing is when you’re getting a little hungry, instead of going and getting a snack, maybe I’ll take a quick protein shake or something and just snack a little bit less, eat a little less calories. Eating a little cleaner has helped.”

To facilitate his progress, Parada sought out alternatives. At Sprouts, a popular organic market, he found packages of dark chocolate squares rich enough to satisfy his cravings but not nearly as bad for him as a full dessert. His father bought him a package of sea salt caramels -- “enough to hold me over to where I wasn’t just putting down a pint of ice cream.” As Parada began to shed pounds, he feared losing strength as well. But his workouts never suffered -- if anything, he began lifting a little more weight -- which helped solidify his new behaviors.

The results have been plain to see. During one early spring workout, while Parada signed autographs for a group of fans, a security guard eyed him up.

“You look solid,” the guard said.

“We’re waiting for you!” a nearby fan called out.

They weren’t the only ones who have taken notice.

“He came into camp in great shape -- you can really tell,” Mets catching and strategy coach Glenn Sherlock said. “The biggest thing for him is to stay athletic.”

When the Mets selected Parada 11th overall in the 2022 Draft, enough optimism surrounded the pick that many wondered how they would fit both Parada and Francisco Alvarez -- back then a highly regarded 20-year-old catching prospect -- on the same Major League roster. At the time, team officials cautioned that these situations tend to work themselves out naturally. As it happened, Alvarez rose up the ranks while Parada was unable to make progress, following an .880 OPS during his first professional season with .752 and .663 marks the past two years.

While six of his peers from that Draft now rank among the Mets’ Top 30 prospects, with players like Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat poised to debut as soon as this season, Parada ranked No. 25 in New York's rankings in 2024.

“He’s trying very hard to do everything right, where he needs to just be himself and let it happen,” Sherlock said. “Be athletic. He’s a good, athletic kid.”

Whether this weight loss results in tangible on-field results for Parada remains to be seen. At a time of year when "best shape of his life" stories abound, it can be delusory to assume a lighter player will be a better one.

But Parada believes athleticism is paramount to his game, both behind the plate and in the batter’s box. Still just 23, less than three years removed from his days as a nationally recognized catcher at Georgia Tech, Parada faces scant competition in the Mets’ farm system. While the club does feature three other catchers in its Pipeline Top 30, none of them have played above Class A ball. And though Alvarez appears entrenched as the starting catcher in New York for years to come, the Mets don’t have an obvious long-term solution for his backup.

At any rate, teams tend to find places for young, promising catchers who can hit. It’s Parada’s aim to become that sort of player once again.

“Absolutely, last year was a brutal year,” Parada said. “It’s not how I wanted things to go. But I’m healthy. I feel good. I’m excited for the year. I’m excited to just showcase what I can do, and continue to play and get to the next level.”