New York Mets Make Decision on Francisco Alvarez

The Mets have made a decision on Francisco Alvarez's role in 2023.

Pat Ragazzo | Jan 19, 2023

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New York Mets

The Mets have made a decision on Francisco Alvarez's role in 2023.

According to SNY's Andy Martino, Alvarez will not be in the full-time designated hitter mix in the big-leagues. Instead, the organization wants their top prospect to continue to develop as a catcher, which means he likely starts the season in Triple-A.

At DH, the Mets have Daniel Vogelbach, who plays against right-handed pitching, and a combination of Darin Ruf and newcomer Tommy Pham, who can face lefties.

After the Pittsburgh Pirates traded him to the Mets, Vogelbach slashed .255/.393/.436 with a .829 OPS, six home runs and 25 RBIs in 55 games.

As for Ruf, he struggled immensely after getting traded by the San Francisco Giants to Queens. In 29 games, Ruf batted .152 with an anemic .413 OPS for the Mets.

Although Pham only slashed .236/.312/.374 in 2022, he faired much better against lefties, posting a .273 average and .784 OPS.

Alvarez's best chance of playing time in the majors this season will come at catcher with some DH at-bats sprinkled in. Behind the dish, the Mets have two defensive specialists in Tomas Nido and Omar Narvaez. The duo of Nido and Narvaez will split catching duties until Alvarez is ready for the bigs.

Alvarez made his big-league debut in the very end of the regular season last year, going 2-for-12 with a moonshot of a home run as one of his two hits in five games.

In the minor leagues, Alvarez had another monstrous campaign, slashing .260/.374/.511 with a .885 OPS, 27 home runs and 78 RBIs in 112 games between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse.

Alvarez is the No. 1 ranked prospect in all of baseball and It's only a matter of time before he becomes a regular in Queens. But the Mets don't want to use him as a full-time DH, so for the time being, the Mets will go with Nido and Narvaez at catcher until Alvarez is ready.

- Mets Agree to 2-Year Deal With Tomas Nido

- Mets in on top Free Agent Lefty Reliever Andrew Chafin

- Mets Agree to Deal With Tommy Pham

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Published Jan 19, 2023

PAT RAGAZZO

Pat Ragazzo is the reporter, publisher, site manager and executive editor for Sports Illustrated's Mets and Yankees On SI websites. Pat was selected as The Top Reporter & Publisher of the Year 2024 by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) for outstanding leadership, dedication, and commitment to the industry. He has been seen on several major TV Network stations including: NBC4, CBS2, FOX5, PIX11 and NY1; and is frequently heard on ESPN New York FM 880 AM and WFAN Sports Radio 101.9 FM as a guest. Pat also serves as the Mets insider for the "Allow Me 2 Be Frank" podcast hosted by Frank "The Tank" Fleming of Barstool Sports. You can follow him on Twitter/X: @ragazzoreport.

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