Fastball

New York Mets Backstop Moved Up Team History Books This Week

The New York Mets earned a huge win earlier this week as catcher Francisco Alvarez hit a historic blast.

Brady Farkas

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez (4) runs the bases after hitting a three run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the ninth inning at Rogers Centre on Sept 11.
New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez (4) runs the bases after hitting a three run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the ninth inning at Rogers Centre on Sept 11. / Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
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The New York Mets came-from-behind to beat the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday afternoon, and as they did that, Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez moved up a special list in team history.

Per @StatsCentre:

Most career home runs hit by a @Mets player prior to their 23rd birthday:
52- Darryl Strawberry
48- Ed Kranepool
41- David Wright
33- Francisco Alvarez (Via his 3-run blast to cap his team's 6-run 9th inning on Wednesday vs TOR)
32- Ron Swoboda
31- Gregg Jefferies
20- Jose Reyes

Alvarez hit a homer in the ninth inning of the team's 6-2 win over Toronto. That win moved the Mets to 80-66 on the season and has them at 1.0 game ahead of the Atlanta Braves in the battle for the third and final wild card spot in the National League.

It's been a tough sophomore campaign for Alvarez, who has dealt with injuries this season. Even after that blast, he has just seven home runs and 34 RBI. This is after he posted a stellar rookie season with 25 homers and 63 RBI.

That said, if he's able to get hot at the right time, it would go a long way toward the Mets being able to make the playoffs for the second time in three years.

New York will be back in action on Friday night when they take on the National League East leading Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.

First pitch is set for 6:40 p.m. ET as Jose Quintana (NYM) takes the mound against right-hander Aaron Nola. Quintana is 8-9 with a 4.09 ERA.

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Brady Farkas

BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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