Francisco

Alvarez

Alvarez was magnificent down the home stretch for New York while playing through a sprained UCL in his right thumb that he suffered back in mid-August. The 23-year-old backstop figures to be a full-go for the outset of spring training.

The hero on Tuesday night, Alvarez found the Wrigley bleachers again with his 11th homer of the season. It soared 413 feet into the night sky, but wasn’t enough to help bring his squad back this time around. It’s been a tumultuous season for Alvarez that began with a fractured hamate bone, saw him demoted over the summer, and now playing through both a sprained thumb on one hand and broken pinkie on the other. Still, he’s up to a .260 batting average and .803 OPS on the season as it feels like he’s finally broken out.

After ball one to start the at-bat in the eighth, Alvarez took three very close pitches, with two of the calls going his way. If pitch four, a 2-1 fastball, had been called a strike, as it ought to have been, Alvarez probably wouldn’t have seen another fastball on pitch five. As is, he saw it well and sent it over the fence for his 10th homer in 72 games this season. The Mets also got homers from Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo tonight, and they moved back ahead of the Reds by one game, though they will lose the tiebreaker if the two finish with the same record.

Alvarez, who has been a magnet for baseballs this season, was hit by a pitch on Tuesday and had to be removed from the game. He did return to the lineup on Wednesday, so this is likely just the Mets giving him a day off with a day game after a night game. Luis Torrens will start behind the plate.

Alvarez was removed after he was plunked in the arm during Tuesday’s win, but the 23-year-old backstop is ready to roll for the second game of the massive three-game set against San Diego.

Alvarez can’t seem to catch a break. The 23-year-old backstop, who is already playing through a broken finger and UCL sprain in his thumb, was in a significant amount of pain after being drilled by a pitch on the left arm. He’ll presumably head for further evaluation and possibly X-rays to determine the severity of the issue. An update on his status should come shortly.

Alvarez managed a good game in light of the utter catastrophe happening with the Mets right now. He hit a 102 mph opposite field laser off Jacob deGrom to get them on the board after falling behind 6-0 in the first inning and chipped in another hit later on. He had three hard-hit balls in total and it’s amazing he can still find this type of power while playing with a sprained thumb on one hand and broken pinkie on his other.

Torrens absence places even more importance on Francisco Alvarez as New York’s starting backstop down the home stretch. It’ll be Hayden Senger returning to the big leagues as the club’s backup catcher.

Alvarez will spend the rest of the year playing through a sprained thumb and fractured pinky on his throwing hand. One would think that would take quite a toll on his offense, but we’ll see. He did have a grand slam for Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday. Luis Torrens will return to a backup role with Alvarez back.

The 23-year-old backstop has been sidelined since August 18 due to a UCL sprain in his right thumb and a fractured pinky finger. He has played in minor league rehab games over the first half of the week without issue though and is ready to make his triumphant return to the big league roster. Fantasy managers can safely activate him for the weekend.