The Mets announced this evening that rookie catcher Francisco Álvarez underwent surgery to repair damaged cartilage in his right ankle. The club’s expectation is that’ll be ready for the start of Spring Training.
Álvarez is regarded by prospect evaluators as one of the top young talents in the sport. The 20-year-old backstop (21 next month) combined for a massive .260/.374/.511 line in 495 plate appearances between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse this season. The Mets rewarded him with a late-season big league call in an attempt to add some right-handed juice to the lineup as they tried to hold off the Braves in the NL East race. Álvarez collected two hits (including a homer) in 12 at-bats down the stretch, and Atlanta seized the division title. New York carried him on the Wild Card series roster against the Padres but only gave him one plate appearance in the loss.
New York certainly views Álvarez as their long-term backstop, but it’s possible he opens next season back in Triple-A. He only started one game behind the dish in the majors, with some reservation among evaluators about his current defensive level. He’s generally expected to remain a catcher long-term, but the Mets could determine he needs a few more reps behind the plate before taking over as a #1 catcher in the majors.
At some point in the not too distant future, however, Álvarez figures to get that longer look. The Mets have veteran James McCann under contract for two more years at a combined $24.3MM. The Mets would presumably welcome an opportunity to shed some of that money after McCann hit only .195/.257/.282 in 61 games this season. They’re not likely to find much trade interest, and McCann is well-regarded enough as a game caller and defender New York seems likelier to wind up keeping him around. He could eventually move into a depth role as Álvarez gains more defensive experience.
Tim Healey of Newsday first reported Álvarez’s surgery before the team announcement.
How do the Mets AAA coaches prepare their prospects for getting boo’d by the home fans?
Seems like a problem unique to Philly and NYC.
Excellent article!
On point.
Not a lot of booing lately in Philadelphia.
Mets gonna Met…
Very original
He was up all night
No reason for the Mets to trade McCann. He is a fine defensive catcher and this team will have enough offense in 2023. Equally important, no other team will give up something to take him, even if the Mets eat half of the salary. Let Alvarez take his time to become a good defensive catcher. I think the Mets will come back next year with a very similar team, maybe with deGrom and Diaz back. You can argue that the Mets, Atlanta and Dodgers choked, or you can conclude that they were all pretty good but beat by teams that got hot at the right time. I tend toward the latter. Obviously, deGrom and Scherzer remain health risks, but Scherzer is signed and staying and if deGrom does not come back then the Mets will get another strong pitcher like Rodon.
Excellent comment. I do hope the Mets do whatever they can to unload McCann. A salary swap for anyone else trying to get another chance to prove themself. I prefer Nido getting most of the reps until Alvarez is ready to hit and call games. Nido deserves a lot more credit than he gets. The pitchers seem to prefer him and he was clutch this year.
McCann can be a perfectly fine, yet overpaid, backup with Nido as an OK starter. Give Alvarez one more year at AAA and bring him up when there’s an injury
McCann was a terrible signing by Sandy Alderson , who by the greatness of the baseball gods is retiring. I would swap McCann for a six pack and a Kim Kardashian signed calendar.
Alderson actually though he had a real Bargain signing McCann for 4 years at $ 40 MM in lieu of Realmuto even though many realized that was an overpay for a career backup catcher who didn’t play in any of their 3 Wild Card Games vs. the Padres. LOL
I remember the worry was that Alvarez would be blocked by Realmuto who could not shift to 1st because of Alonso. No DH yet. I liked it at the time but yeah it did not work out
Kevin Parada is a much better defensive catcher than Alveaez but he’s at least 3 years away.
Alvarez needs to go on a Healthy Diet. He is beyond stocky and his body won’t hold up to the rigors of catching with all the excess weight. LOL
Anthony. Thanks for the intel. Switching gears. Curious about Baty. Any news on his thumb injury? Depending on the publication, he’s anywhere from back to AAA to a top 20 fantasy pick at 3rd base in 23.
Another overhyped Mets prospect in an article, and the Mets fandom growth this year, and it’s almost a ghost town in here?
People may knock Marlins fans about having low numbers, but at least we’re loyal and don’t disappear like certain fanbases that have millions when the weather is fair, and all go into hiding once they’re done.
Yea everyone is gone
@Bill M
Not all of you are gone, but you have to admit, these boards have cleared out of the many of them that were here all season. The first wave bailed out when the Braves caught the Mets. The rest of the new ones left after the Padres beat the Mets.
I read earlier in the year that the Marlins had an offer to move to Montreal and would go if they got a domed stadium. I don’t read much Miami news,I was wondering if you saw anything like that.
@cleonswoboda
Sounds like whoever you heard that rumor from also doesn’t read much Miami news and pulled that out of their fudge-hole.