Francisco Alvarez's possible promotion to Mets 'undetermined'
Mets minor-league catcher Francisco Alvarez during practice at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Feb. 18. Credit: Octavio Jones
OAKLAND, Calif. — Francisco Alvarez, the Mets’ top prospect and one of the best in baseball, is back to mashing for Triple-A Syracuse, excelling at the plate across almost two weeks since returning from an ankle injury.
Might the Mets promote him to the majors in search of a very-late-season offensive boost? That is “undetermined,” general manager Billy Eppler said.
So, it’s not a firm no.
“Nothing’s been official in that space,” Eppler said when asked Friday if the Mets had ruled out calling up Alvarez. “Just glad he’s out playing again, feeling good. We’re watching him, just like everybody else down there. But nothing has been determined."
Syracuse’s season ends Wednesday. After that, some of those players will head to what Eppler called a “hold-back camp” at the team’s facility in Port St. Lucie, Florida. It will be sort of like the 2020 alternate training site — minus the extensive pandemic protocols — for however long the Mets play into the postseason.
For now, Alvarez is with Syracuse, for which he is 13-for-35 (.371) with a .421 OBP and .686 slugging percentage in the small sample of nine games since getting back in the lineup. That stretch includes three homers, two doubles and 10 RBIs (and 10 strikeouts to one walk).
The Mets have lessened Alvarez’s physical load recently by giving him days off and as the DH. He hasn’t started at catcher on back-to-back days since coming back.
Significantly, Eppler noted, Alvarez is playing through the end of a long season. Last year he played until mid-September in Single-A.
“All the feedback has been positive on him,” Eppler said. “He’s getting the at-bats that we want him to be able to finish with too. Seasons are long at the major-league level, so if he can finish off that would be a good thing for him.”
Alvarez, 20, missed almost three weeks before that because of what the Mets called a “loose body” in his right ankle. He received an injection and was shut down for a few days before resuming baseball activities.
In the month and a half between his promotion to Syracuse and going on the injured list, Alvarez had a .180/.340/.378 slash line. He’s doing much better now.
“I think he was dealing with the ankle for a while before he finally wanted to say something. So a good learning moment for everybody involved,” Eppler said. “It’s nice that there’s something material to point to [since] he wasn't putting up the numbers that he wanted or that some people were expecting. And frankly, I think jumping levels is hard to do."
Nimmo good to go
Brandon Nimmo was in his usual spots Friday against the Athletics, batting leadoff and playing centerfield. He had been questionable to play after leaving the Mets' game Wednesday with a tight left quad.
“We got a clean report (from an MRI) yesterday, so that was really good news,” Showalter said.
Slow goings with Givens
Showalter said he didn’t know when Mychal Givens, on the COVID-related injured list for a week, might return. Whereas he had an idea of a timeline with Tomas Nido and Trevor May during their recent similar experiences, that isn’t the case this time.
“This one has been moving slow,” Showalter said. “You can’t push something that’s not there.”
Homecomings
The Athletics inducted Mets hitting coach Eric Chavez, who played for them from 1998-2010, into their Hall of Fame on Friday.
The Mets’ rare trip to Oakland also marked a return home for former longtime A's Mark Canha, especially, and Chris Bassitt. Both had a lot of hugs and handshakes with former teammates and others in their first time back since Canha signed with the Mets last offseason and Bassitt was traded to the Mets in March.
Canha was glowing before the series opener.
“Whenever I get to the Bay Area,” said Canha, who was born, grew up, went to college and played here, “I can’t shake it."
The Athletics played a short tribute video for Bassitt, Canha and Starling Marte, who spent part of last season with Oakland.
Happy day
Jeff McNeil spent his off day Thursday with his wife and infant son — his first time seeing them since the All-Star break, according to Showalter. Lucas McNeil was born in July.
“Think about that,” Showalter said. “He’s in really good spirits today."
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
