The New York Mets had a monster offseason, in some ways, matching their crosstown rivals in the New York Yankees.
Not only did the Mets poach superstar outfielder Juan Soto and two-time All-Star closer-turned-starter Clay Holmes from the Bronx, but they re-signed slugging first baseman Pete Alonso to a two-year contract with an opt-out following the 2025 campaign.
While their projected starting rotation looks shaky heading into the spring thanks in large part to the injuries of Sean Manaea (strained oblique) and Frankie Montas (strained lat), manager Carlos Mendoza’s club is likely to feature one of the most dangerous offenses in the National League.
Insider Jon Heyman reported on Friday that All-Star shortstop (and 2024 NL MVP runner-up) Francisco Lindor is expected to lead off, followed by Soto and Alonso. Power-hitting third baseman Mark Vientos and outfielder Brandon Nimmo are slated to hit fourth and fifth, with the order depending on if the Mets are facing a righty or lefty.
From there, catcher Francisco Alvarez was going to lead the bottom half of the lineup, but all those plans changed on Sunday.
“Francisco Alvarez has a fractured hamate bone in his left hand. He is having surgery tomorrow. He’s out for 6-8 weeks,” Tim Healey of Newsday Sports reported.
According to a report by the New York Post’s Mike Puma, the injury occurred when the 23-year-old backstop was taking a swing during live batting practice on Saturday. Puma noted that Mendoza added that Alvarez is expected to be sidelined for the full eight weeks.
Injury Troubles Continue For Alvarez Following Solid Rookie Season
Alvarez signed with the Mets in July 2018 at 16 years old and tore his way through the minors before debuting in Queens at the end of the 2022 season. Alvarez then showed off his power across 382 at-bats covering 123 games in his 2023 rookie campaign, finishing third on the team with 25 home runs, only behind Alonso and Lindor.
His 2024 season got off to a rough start when he suffered a torn UCL in mid-April, also in his left hand, which led to surgery. Alvarez missed over seven weeks of action and finished the campaign with just 11 home runs, 47 RBI and a .237/.307/.403 slash line in 308 at-bats and 100 games.
“It’s always tough when one of your guys goes down like that,” Mendoza said, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan. “But again, you’ve got to keep going. Nobody’s going to feel sorry for us. Everybody deals with injuries. We’ll get him back.”
Who Replaces Alvarez Behind the Plate?
With Alvarez out for the foreseeable future, 28-year-old Luis Torrens is likely to slide into the starting role.
The Venezuelan is the only other catcher on New York’s 40-man roster, though Mendoza said that president of baseball operations David Stearns could look at out-of-house options too.
“It’s a big blow when your starting catcher goes down,” Mendoza said, according to Passan. “But guys will step up. Guys will get opportunities. We feel good with what we have in-house. Pretty sure David and the group will be looking for outside as well, as he always does. But you hate to see it.”
Will Sammon of The Athletic wrote on Sunday that the Mets will “lean on” Torrens, with other choices including 29-year-old Jakson Reetz, 28-year-old Chris Williams and 27-year-old Hayden Senger. Reetz is the only catcher other than Torrens with big league experience, albeit only 16 career at-bats.
Torrens spent the first seven seasons of his career with the San Diego Padres (2017-2020), Seattle Mariners (2020-22, 23) and Chicago Cubs (2023), seeing limited playing time, before being traded to the Mets last May.
His most extensive action came in 2021 with the Mariners, when he hit 15 home runs and slashed .243/.299/.431 over 378 plate appearances in 108 games. Torrens recorded three home runs and 15 RBI with a .229/.292/.373 triple slash over 48 contests (130 plate appearances) with New York in 2024.
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