Mets Deliver Brutal Francisco Alvarez Injury News

Alvarez will undergo knee surgery and his timeline to return is currently unknown. The Mets are hoping that he will be out for 6-8 weeks, but nothing is set in stone yet.

Alvarez, 24, was removed from action on Tuesday night after favoring his knee following a swing in an at-bat. He exited in the sixth inning of the Mets' eventual 10-2 win over the Detroit Tigers.

After slugging 25 home runs as a rookie back in 2023, Alvarez, a former top prospect, has dealt with a number of brutal injuries over the past three seasons. In 2024, he tore the UCL in his thumb and last season he broke his hamate bone during spring training. Both injuries required prolonged stints on the IL.

On the season, Alvarez is slashing .241/.317/.393 with a .710 OPS, four home runs and 10 RBI in 37 games. Despite his solid offensive numbers, he has taken a major step back defensively this year in terms of blocking the ball (-3 blocks above average, per Baseball Savant). He also has -1 catcher framing runs on the year.

Without Alvarez, the Mets will turn to backup Luis Torrens to take over as the starting catcher. Torrens recently signed a two-year, $11.5 million contract extension with the Mets on May 2.

Torrens is an upgrade behind the dish over Alvarez. However, he is not as much of a threat at the plate. In 48 at-bats, Torrens is hitting just .208/.255/.292 with a .547 OPS, no homers and eight RBI.

The Mets have called up catcher Hayden Senger from Triple-A Syracuse to replace Alvarez on the roster. Senger will serve as Torrens' backup while Alvarez is sidelined.

New York (16-25) will look to win their second game in a row against the Tigers on Wednesday night. The Mets have a steep hole to climb out of this season and they will be forced to do so without Alvarez for the foreseeable future.