The Mets introduced as we speak that they’ve optioned catcher Francisco Alvarez to Triple-A. Catcher Hayden Senger was referred to as as much as take Alvarez’s spot on the energetic roster.
Alvarez, 23, is within the midst of his fourth MLB season. He performed simply 5 video games within the majors in 2022, nevertheless, and entered the 2023 marketing campaign a consensus top-10 prospect in the whole sport. He hit a good .209/.284/.437 (97 wRC+) with 25 house runs in 123 video games throughout that rookie marketing campaign whereas grading out as one of many sport’s finest defensive catchers. It was a robust sufficient exhibiting to make Alvarez a lock to function the Mets’ common catcher in 2024, however was sidelined by a hand damage that finally required him to bear surgical procedure on his thumb and miss almost two months. Alvarez was in a position to hit a good .237/.307/.403 (102 wRC+) final yr, roughly league common manufacturing regardless of a pointy decline in energy output.
Whereas Alvarez’s total offensive line was on par with expectations in 2024, there have been nonetheless causes for concern. His once-elite protection was simply common in 2024 as his blocking means went from common to the second percentile amongst qualifying catchers per Statcast. His pitch framing numbers additionally slipped barely, although they nonetheless remained elite. Along with the step again defensively, Alvarez’s energy outage final yr led underlying metrics to evaluate his efficiency on the plate extra harshly final yr; his xwOBA dropped from .305 in 2023 to only .289 in 2024 regardless of his wOBA remaining regular at .310 throughout each seasons.
2025 began out on a familiarly powerful observe for Alvarez, as he missed the beginning of the season resulting from surgical procedure on his left hand—this time to restore a fractured hamate bone. Since making his season debut on April 25, Alvarez has hit simply .236/.319/.333 with a wRC+ of 91. That’s not horrible for the requirements of the catcher place, but it surely’s nonetheless a far cry from the roughly league common manufacturing he had posted for his profession coming into this yr. He’s additionally hitting for even much less energy than final yr, with simply three house runs and three doubles in 35 video games. An 8.2% barrel fee means that is perhaps resulting from some lackluster batted ball luck, however additional steps backward defensively aren’t as straightforward to dismiss.
Alvarez has remained beneath common as a blocker behind the plate after final yr’s tough exhibiting, and he’s now grow to be one of many worst framing catchers within the league after that was his sturdy swimsuit in his profession previous to this season. Whereas he’s stayed considerably worthwhile by throwing out opposing base runners at an elite fee, Alvarez has fallen off to the purpose of changing into a mean to beneath common catcher total primarily based on his numbers this yr. Between his offense trending downward and his uncharacteristically lackluster protection behind the plate, the Mets clearly felt it was time to ship him to the minors for a reset.
It’s an indication of urgency for a membership that not too long ago misplaced seven consecutive video games earlier than snapping that shedding streak with a win over the Phillies final evening. The Mets are in a statistical tie with Philadelphia for the NL East title in the intervening time, which places a premium on wins as they appear to rebuild their lead within the division and put the membership’s entrance workplace in place to purchase extra aggressively on the commerce deadline this summer time. Whereas the perfect model of the Mets entails Alvarez within the lineup regularly, although Luis Torrens has proven himself to be deserving of a daily position within the short-term with sturdy defensive grades and an 89 wRC+ that’s not too far off of Alvarez’s personal determine this yr.
Within the brief time period, it appears Senger might be tasked with backing up Torrens. The 28-year-old made his MLB debut earlier this yr and has hit .179/.207/.214 (18 wRC+) in 29 plate appearances throughout 13 video games within the majors. Long term, there’s little query that Alvarez will return to the majors with the membership and rejoin Torrens as a part of the membership’s catching tandem. The Athletic’s Will Sammon studies that the Mets are glad with their catching tandem at this level and that they aren’t anticipated to enter commerce season available in the market for catching assist.
