One Mets Injury Caused Biggest 'What-If' of Season

The New York Mets might be in a completely different position if not for an injury to one of their impact players.

Sep 21, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez (4) rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the second inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Boland-Imagn Images / Lucas Boland-Imagn Images

The New York Mets' 63-36 record since June 1 is the best in all MLB. This team has played excellent baseball over what has now been nearly four months, and appear to be peaking at the perfect time heading into the postseason.

Multiple players deserve credit for New York turning their season around after a rough first couple of months. Yet, the stats show that catcher Francisco Alvarez has had the biggest impact on winning when he stays healthy.

A September 24 article from Joel Rueter of Bleacher Report conveys that the Mets' biggest 'What-if' this season is what their record would look like if Alvarez hadn't been sidelined due to injury.

"Simply put, the New York Mets are a different team when Franciso Alvarez is in the lineup, and his impact stretches beyond just his surface-level stats," Rueter wrote.

"The 22-year-old missed almost two months during the first half after suffering a torn ligament in his left thumb that required surgery, and the team's performance with him in the lineup compared to without him speaks volumes.

"with Alvarez: 95 G, 63-32, .663 winning percentage
without Alvarez: 61 G, 24-37, .393 winning percentage," Rueter noted.

He later added, "With a .959 OPS, five home runs and 14 RBI in 55 plate appearances this month, [Alvarez] is swinging a hot bat down the stretch."

Theoretically, if Alvarez was to have played in every single regular game this season and the Mets kept that same .663 winning percentage when he was on the field, they'd have won about 107 games.

While the Mets surely wish Alvarez would not have been injured earlier this year, what's most important is that he's fit to play right now. And New York appears poised to make a deep postseason run with him behind the plate.