How Mets’ 2022 Draft Picks Fared in First Season

The Mets had a draft in 2022 that could be instrumental in the franchise’s future success that included two first round picks and five of the first 90 picks of the draft.

I’m going to go over how each of the Mets’ draft picks did in their brief pro debuts during the 2022 season. Unfortunately, the Mets did not sign third rounder Brandon Sproat as he decided to play another year for the Florida Gators. Additionally, prep picks Jackson Jaha and Jackson Lovich didn’t sign with the Mets and are headed to college.

Let’s take a look at how each draft pick did in their pro debut.

1st Round (#11) Kevin Parada – C

The Mets top pick of the 2022 draft class made his presence known in only a few games to finish off the 2022 season between the FCL Mets and Low-A St. Lucie Mets. The right-handed hitter slashed .275/.455/.425 with three doubles, one home run, eight RBIs, and almost as many walks (12) as strikeouts (13) in his first 13 games.

The 21-year-old played a key role in the St. Lucie Mets winning the Florida State League Championship with a .400/.471/.467 slashing line and five RBIs in four playoff games. He also provided value defensively getting 13 called balls turned into strikes with the ABS challenge system in those four games.

Look for Parada to begin the 2023 season with High-A Brooklyn.

1st Round (#14) Jett Williams – SS

The 18-year-old speedster impressed in his limited pro debut with the Florida Complex League Mets. Williams hit .250/.366/.438 with a double, a home run, a triple, and six RBIs. He also stole six bases without being caught once.

I would expect Williams to make his full season debut in 2023 with the Low-A St. Lucie Mets.

2nd Round (#52) Blade Tidwell – RHP

The right-hander has first round talent but injury concerns had him fall to the Mets in the second round where they gave him an overslot bonus. The 21-year-old pitched one scoreless inning for the FCL Mets before helping St. Lucie on their championship run. Tidwell pitched 8 1/3 innings in four regular season appearances allowing two runs (2.16 ERA) on only four hits, nine strikeouts, and six walks.

Tidwell’s final start of the regular season saw him throw three scoreless innings with five strikeouts and zero walks and that seemed to catapult him into a strong postseason. The former Tennessee Volunteer was lights out in two playoff starts for St. Lucie:

9.2 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 13 K, fastball up to 98 mph

Coming off a strong finish to the 2022 season, you have to relieve Tidwell will start next year in High-A in the Brooklyn Cyclones’ rotation.

2nd Round (#75) Nick Morabito – INF/OF

It was only a week’s worth of games for the versatile 19-year-old, but the results were not pretty as he went 2-for-22 with 14 strikeouts in six games for the FCL Mets. Morabito played four of those games in center field and one of them in right field, and he also has experience playing middle infield as well.

4th Round (#119) Jacob Reimer – 3B

The calling card for the 18-year-old is power and he showed that off with a home run, triple, and seven RBIs in seven pro games for the FCL Mets. He also walked six times giving him a .261/.414/.471 slash line in his first taste of pro ball.

5th Round (#149) D’Andre Smith – 2B/SS

It was a mixed bag for Smith in his pro debut that included him showing off impressive raw power with six extra-base hits in 50 at-bats, but also striking out a whopping 15 times in that span. In 15 games between the FCL and St. Lucie, the 21-year-old hit .220/.298/.440 with three doubles, a triple, and two home runs. Smith added two walks and two doubles in four playoff games as the St. Lucie Mets leadoff hitter.

6th Round (#179) Tyler Stuart – RHP

The 6’9”, 250-pound righty allowed four runs in 3 2/3 innings between the FCL and St. Lucie Mets. Stuart did strike out seven in that span with a high-spin fastball up to 96 mph and a slider that he used frequently.

7th Round (#209) Jonah Tong – RHP

The Canadian teenager didn’t pitch in a pro game, instead, he threw bullpens at the Mets facility in Port St. Lucie.

8th Round (#239) Dylan Tebrake – RHP

The 23-year-old was impressive in his pro debut with 4 2/3 scoreless innings for the FCL and St. Lucie Mets. In that span, he struck out eight, walked none and gave up five hits. Tebrake was up to 96 mph with his four-seamer and his most used secondary was a slider up to 89 mph.

9th Round (#269) Chase Estep – 3B

The left-handed hitter played in one game for the FCL Mets before moving up to St. Lucie for 24 games. Estep hit .214/.323/.405 with four doubles and four home runs in 23 games for St. Lucie. In that span, he walked an impressive 13 times, but also struck out 23 times as well.

10th Round (#299) Zebulon Vermillion – RHP

Zebulon Vermillion, arguably the best name in the 2022 draft. retired all three batters he’s faced in his only pro appearance for the FCL Mets. The Kansas native stands at 6’5”, and 240 pounds. He features a mid-90s four-seamer and cutter up to 90 mph mix.

11th Round (#329) Rhylan Thomas – OF

The left-handed hitter went 9-for-35 with only one extra-base hit in 10 games for the FCL Mets, though he did walk five times compared to only two strikeouts in that time. Thomas went 1-for-11 with three walks after a late-season promotion for St. Lucie.

12th Round (#359) Paul Gervase – RHP

The 6’10” right-handed reliever struggled to a 6.10 ERA in 10 1/3 innings for St. Lucie during the regular season, but he turned it around in the postseason as a key arm in their championship run. Gervase tossed 1 2/3 scoreless in the game that sent them to the final series and then pitched 3 1/3 scoreless to pick up the save in the championship-deciding game. He was up to 97 mph this year and also mixes in a slider and change.

13th Round (#389) Dylan Ross – RHP

The hard-throwing right-hander was up to 99 mph this year before arm surgery stopped his college season after only six innings.

14th Round (#419) Cameron Foster – RHP

The 23-year-old did not make his pro debut yet.

16th Round (#479) Jimmy Loper – RHP

The 23-year-old from Hawaii did not pitch for the Mets in 2022.

17th Round (#509) Connor Brandon – RHP

The 21-year-old pitched two scoreless innings for the FCL Mets to get his feet wet in pro ball. The high school football player gets his fastball up to 98 mph.

18th Round (#539) Chris Santiago – RHP

Santiago, 21, didn’t allow a hit in three scoreless innings for the FCL Mets to get his pro career started.

20th Round (#599) Eli Ankeney – LHP

The lefty was lights out in his few appearances for the FCL Mets to begin his career spanning 3 1/3 innings. The 21-year-old didn’t allow a hit, walk, or run and struck out six in that time.