Mets' Francisco Alvarez leaves rehab game after hit by pitch

Before leaving Wednesday's game, Alvarez went 1-for-2 at the dish, doubling in the first inning, followed by grounding out in the third inning.

The Mets are hoping that Alvarez could return as soon as this weekend, before they begin a 10-game road trip against the Detroit Tigers, Cincinnati Reds, and Philadelphia Phillies, all of whom are vying for playoff spots.

While the severity of Alvarez's injury has not been determined yet, he was not hit on his injured right thumb, and he admitted this week that he is not in any pain after taking batting practice at Citi Field.

It's been a frustrating season for Alvarez as he had to miss nearly the first month of the regular season after fracturing his left hamate bone during spring training. Once Alvarez made his season debut, the 23-year-old struggled mightily both offensively and behind the plate, resulting in the Mets demoting him to Triple-A on June 22.

But after raking in 19 games for Syracuse, the Amazins' recalled Alvarez on July 21; he would soon find his stride at the plate, slashing .293/.388/.603 in 21 games as well as going 9-for-21 with three home runs and nine RBI over his last seven games, including a two-homer game against the Atlanta Braves on August 12.

The Mets can ill afford to lose Alvarez to another injury, especially given how quickly he has been progressing with his UCL tear in his right thumb, which will require surgery at some point. New York is also continuing their playoff push; after completing a three-game sweep of the Phillies, they now trail Philadelphia by just four games for first place in the National League East and are sitting comfortably in the third and final wild card spot in the NL.

In just 56 games this season, Alvarez is batting .265/.349/.438 with seven long balls, 24 RBI and a .787 OPS.