Mets recall starting catcher Francisco Alvarez after he tears up Triple-A pitching
In a somewhat surprising move, the 23-year-old Alvarez was demoted to the minors on June 22 — one day after he went 2 for 5 with a 452-foot home run late in an 11-4 victory at Philadelphia.
At the time, he was scuffling on defense and batting only .236 with three homers, three doubles, 11 RBIs and a .652 OPS in 35 games this season. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza called the move 'kind of like a wakeup call' for Alvarez, who had been a big league regular since 2023 after reaching the majors late in the previous season.
But it took him less than a month to get back to New York, after Alvarez hit .299 with 11 homers, 24 RBIs and a 1.233 OPS in 19 games at Triple-A Syracuse.
'I think personally I had to focus on myself and work on myself,' he told reporters through an interpreter. 'I think being down in Triple-A, I think what helped me was I learned how to be patient. I just continued to work hard, continued to do what I needed to do and just to put in the time to eventually get back to the big leagues.'
Alvarez batted eighth Monday night for the Mets in the opener of a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels at Citi Field.
'First and foremost, we wanted to see how Alvy was going to respond to the challenge that we gave him when we sent him down,' Mets President of Baseball Operations David Stearns said. 'This happened faster than I would have envisioned when we optioned him.'
Over his last six games with Syracuse since July 11, Alvarez batted .476 (10 for 21) with seven homers, 15 RBIs, 10 runs, five walks and a 2.164 OPS.
Pretty astounding — in any league.
'It seems like for the last week he hit a homer every day,' Mendoza said. 'He handled it like a pro, and here he is and we are all proud of him.'
Stearns, also noting Alvarez's steady hard work during his minor league stint, said the catcher's rapid improvement on defense was even more important for the Mets to see than all that offensive production.
Alvarez was activated April 25 after beginning the season on the injured list with a hamate fracture in his left hand, and he missed two games last month while on the paternity list.
Once rated baseball's top minor league prospect, Alvarez had 25 homers and 63 RBIs with a .721 OPS as a rookie in 2023.
'We need him. We know how important he is for this team,' Mendoza said.
Luis Torrens got most of the playing time at catcher while Alvarez was in the minors. New York optioned backup Hayden Senger to Syracuse following Sunday's win over Cincinnati.
In other roster moves, right-hander Rico Garcia was claimed off waivers from the New York Yankees, and reliever Dedniel Núñez (right elbow) was transferred to the 60-day injured list. Left-hander Richard Lovelady was sent outright to Triple-A.
Designated hitter Starling Marte (bruised right knee) could be reinstated from the injured list Wednesday or Friday, according to Mendoza. And right-hander José Buttó (illness) will either come off the IL or pitch in a minor league game Wednesday.
Right-hander Paul Blackburn is expected to continue his rehab assignment with Syracuse on Tuesday.
___
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