Francisco Alvarez injury update: Mets receive positive news following catcher's early exit against Phillies

Francisco Alvarez experienced the repercussions of playing catcher, one of baseball's most taxing positions, on Sunday evening. After receiving back-to-back uncomfortable glancing blows to the tip of his left middle finger on foul balls during an at-bat against Brandon Marsh, Alvarez was taken out of the team's series finale against the Phillies in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Before Omar Narvaez took Alvarez's spot behind the plate, the Mets' training team had visited Alvarez twice. The player told reporters:

"It's just part of the game and every single time we go out on the field, we run the risk of something happening."

X-rays on Francisco Alvarez's left middle finger were negative after he took three foul tips off his mitt tonight."That's just part of the game. Every single time we go out on that field, we run the risk of something happening." - AnthonyDiComo

According to Buck Showalter, the Mets manager, Alvarez X-ray results show the damage as "a finger contusion." The play writhed in anguish, with a bit of tape on his finger visible.

Earlier in the game, the rookie had caught a foul ball off the same finger.

Francisco Alvarez's baseball career

In July 2018, Alvarez joined the New York Mets as an unrestricted foreign free agent. On September 30, 2022, the Mets promoted him and he made his Major league debut as a designated hitter against the Atlanta Braves the same day.

To start the 2023 season, he was optioned to the Triple-A Syracuse Mets. However, his stay at Triple-A did not last long as on April 7 he was called up to the Mets due to an injury to Omar Narvaez's leg.

Alvarez had 11 home runs, 23 RBI, and a.244 average. On June 8, against the Atlanta Braves, he blasted two home runs, becoming the second-youngest Mets player since Darryl Strawberry (1983) to smash three home runs in a period of two games.

The only other 21-year-old catcher to hit 20 home runs in a season was lvarez, who accomplished this feat on July 29 against the Washington Nationals.