New York Mets Catcher Passes Hall of Famer in Baseball History Books

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez hit another home run on Saturday afternoon. With that home run, he passed Hall of Famer Johnny Bench in baseball history.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez hit another home run on Saturday afternoon against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

That home run was his 12th of the season and came in the eighth inning of a 5-1 Mets win.

With the home run, Alvarez passed Johnny Bench in some very impressive baseball history.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

most HR in 1st 45 games played in season, primary-position catchers at age 21 or younger: 

2023 Francisco Alvarez: 12 

1969 Johnny Bench: 11 

Saturday was Alvarez’s 43rd game of the season, so his next 2 games count toward this total, too

most HR in 1st 45 games played in season, primary-position catchers at age 21 or younger:

2023 Francisco Alvarez: 12
1969 Johnny Bench: 11

Saturday was Alvarez’s 43rd game of the season, so his next 2 games count toward this total, too

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) June 10, 2023

Bench is one of the best catchers in baseball history, having hit 389 career home runs, making 14 All-Star teams, and winning 10 Gold Gloves, so passing him on any list is impressive. 

Alvarez, 21, is now hitting .250 this season and has run with the full-time job in the wake of the injury to Omar Narvaez. He's got the 12 homers and 25 RBI on the year while posting an OPS of .860. 

He made his debut last season, playing in just five games.

With the win, the Mets are now 31-34 on the season and in fourth place in the National League East.

The loss dropped Pittsburgh to 33-30. They are tied with the Milwaukee Brewers for first place in the National League Central.

The two teams will finish out the series on Sunday afternoon at 1:35 p.m. ET. Carlos Carrasco will pitch for New York while Mitch Keller will go for Pittsburgh.