New York Mets catching prospect Francisco Alvarez is behind the plate and is hitting second on Tuesday against the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies and left-hander Ranger Suarez. Not only has Alvarez earned more playing time for the Mets of late, but he's also earned a spot high up in the batting order. After a slow start to the season, the 21-year-old Venezuelan backstop has hit .309 (21-for-68) with six doubles, seven home runs, 17 RBI and 11 runs scored in 21 games in the month of May to raise his season slash line to .269/.327/.558 with an .885 OPS. Even when Omar Narvaez (calf) returns from the injured list soon, Alvarez has earned the majority of starts behind the dish for the Mets.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez is starting behind the plate and is hitting ninth in the batting order on Wednesday against the Chicago Cubs and right-hander Marcus Stroman. Alvarez got off to a slow start this year, but he's showing signs of why he's one of the top catching prospects in all of baseball lately. The 21-year-old backstop is now hitting .238 (20-for-84) with four doubles, five home runs, 11 RBI and 10 runs scored in 28 total games. Alvarez has gone 13-for-48 (.271) with four doubles, four long balls and nine RBI in 16 games in May, and he may stick around in the big leagues once Tomas Nido and Omar Narvaez return from the injured list. If he sticks around with the Mets, Alvarez will likely be playing on a near-everyday basis.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez and rookie third baseman Mark Vientos are both out of the starting lineup on Thursday against the Tampa Bay Rays. Alvarez is a bit dinged up and will receive a day off behind the plate after he hit a big three-run home run in Wednesday's 10-inning victory. The 21-year-old backstop has now played in 26 games in 2023 and is hitting .218 (17-for-78) with four doubles, four home runs and nine RBI. The 23-year-old Vientos went 1-for-4 with his first big-league home run in his MLB debut on Wednesday. Michael Perez is doing the catching for New York on Thursday and is in the nine-hole, while Brett Baty is at third base and is batting fifth against Rays right-handed rookie Taj Bradley.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez is absent from the lineup on Saturday against the Washington Nationals. The 21-year-old backstop will take a seat against Nats starter Trevor Williams while Michael Perez will take over behind the dish. Alvarez is slashing .231/.275/.415 with three home runs and six RBI over his first 65 at-bats on the year. He should return to the starting lineup for Sunday's series finale.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez is doing the catching and is hitting ninth in the batting order on Thursday against the Cincinnati Reds and right-hander Derek Law. It's the fifth start in a row for the young catcher, and he's also starting in a day game after a night game. The 21-year-old has started to pick it up of late with his bat and is now hitting .228 (13-for-57) with two doubles, three home runs and six RBI in 20 games played. Since the calendar flipped to May, Alvarez has gone 6-for-21 (.286) with two doubles, two home runs and four RBI in eight games. He doesn't have a ton of DFS appeal in the nine-hole on Thursday, but it's a good matchup and he's been swinging the bat much better.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in the team's defeat to the Reds on Tuesday. The 21-year-old raised his batting average to .241 with the performance. The round trippers provide a glimmer of hope to fantasy managers in redraft leagues who flocked to waiver wires to add him last month, only to witness an extended nondescript start to Alvarez's professional career. He has been hitting better of late, though, going 8-for-23 since April 27. Alvarez is not yet living up to the hype that's made him baseball's top prospect the past two years, but the hard-hitting backstop should be glued atop fantasy watch lists for his mouthwatering potential.

New York Mets third baseman Brett Baty and catcher Francisco Alvarez (head) are both in the starting lineup on Friday against Atlanta Braves left-hander Max Fried. Baty and Alvarez are the team's top-two prospects, according to MLB Pipeline. This will be Baty's first big-league start against a southpaw, but he's earned more playing time at third base by going 9-for-28 (.321) with a double, home run and three RBI in his nine games played. Baty should eventually be New York's everyday third baseman, and he needs to be rostered everywhere. Alvarez is catching and hitting ninth after taking a few swings to the head in Thursday's game. The 21-year-old has so far struggled at the plate, hitting .176 (6-for-34) with a homer and two RBI in his first 11 games in 2023.

New York Mets manager Buck Showalter told reporters after Thursday's win over the Washington Nationals that backstop Francisco Alvarez (head) is doing well after leaving the game in the ninth inning, according to Tim Britton of The Athletic. The 21-year-old was hit in the back of the head by a couple of swings, so the Mets removed him as a precaution, but there's a chance he'll be back in the lineup Friday. Alvarez hasn't lived up to his potential yet, slashing .176/.200/.265 with one home run, three runs, and two RBI across 11 contests. The top prospect has more value in dynasty leagues right now due to his immaturity at the big-league level.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez is behind the plate and is batting ninth for the Mets on Thursday against right-hander Trevor Williams and the Washington Nationals. In his first full season with the Mets in 2023, Alvarez has gotten off to an ice-cold start, going 5-for-31 (.161) with one home run, two RBI, two runs scored and 12 strikeouts and no walks. Despite the rough start, the 21-year-old catching prospect is seeing more starts at catcher over Tomas Nido. However, he'll probably need to pick things up soon offensively to avoid a trip back to the minor leagues. Fantasy managers should probably look to avoid him in starting lineups until he shows some signs of life.

New York Mets catching prospect Francisco Alvarez is making his 2023 season debut on Sunday against the Miami Marlins and left-hander Braxton Garrett. Alvarez will be behind the plate and is hitting eighth in the batting order. The Mets recalled their top prospect, per MLB Pipeline, from Triple-A Syracuse on Friday when Omar Narvaez (calf) landed on the injured list, but Alvarez's first start didn't come until Sunday. Narvaez is expected to miss the next two months, and the 21-year-old backstop should see most of the playing time behind the plate over Tomas Nido. Alvarez has much more offensive upside than Nido and he should be picked up in all fantasy leagues if he's still available because of his projected big role in the coming months.

The New York Mets plan to call up catching prospect Francisco Alvarez before their home opener against the Miami Marlins on Friday, according to a source. It's unclear how the playing time between Alvarez and Tomas Nido will shake out, but Mets officials were consistent during training camp that if Alvarez was in the majors this year, they want him to catch regularly. Omar Narvaez (calf) landed on the injured list on Thursday and is expected to be out eight to nine weeks, so the team's top prospect should see regular playing time. The 21-year-old has big-time offensive upside at a weak position in fantasy, so he needs to be scooped up immediately if he's available in your league. Alvarez hit 27 home runs in the minors in 2022 and already had two long balls early on for Triple-A Syracuse this year.

The New York Mets are planning to call up catcher Francisco Alvarez on Friday to begin their weekend series with the Cincinnati Reds. The Mets are playing it safe at the catcher position after starter Omar Narvaez left Wednesday's game with a calf injury. Alvarez is considered one of the Mets' top prospects and is worth an add off of waivers in deeper leagues as he would be New York's starting catcher if Narvaez's injury keeps him out for an extended time.

New York Mets catcher prospect Francisco Alvarez has been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. Alvarez, 21, is the clubs top prospect, but struggled mightily in Spring Training. In 28 at-bats, the youngster only recorded three hits and one RBI. In addition to his poor hitting, the Mets wanted to have a veteran behind the dish for their pitching staff. Due to this, Alvarez also got at-bats as a designated hitter. Despite his demotion, he remains a bright spot in the Mets system and could force his way to the roster as a backup catcher/designated hitter with a strong start in Triple-A. The teams top prospect is there offensively, but he will get more seasoning defensively on the farm. Alvarez should already be rostered in dynasty leagues and could be an exciting option in redrafts, if he gets promoted this season. For now, the Mets will stick with Omar Narvaez and Tomas Nido at catcher. Both can be avoided in most formats.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez (ankle) will make his Grapefruit League catching debut in the back half of Friday's game against the Washington Nationals. Alvarez has been limited to designated hitter duties so far this spring as a precaution for his surgically repaired right ankle. While Alvarez is the No. 3 overall prospect in MLB, per MLB Pipeline, he shouldn't be considered a top target in single-catcher leagues just yet. The 21-year-old can also play the outfield and can serve as the DH for the Mets, but there's still a chance he opens the 2023 season at Triple-A Syracuse. Alvarez has impressive raw power for a catcher, but he went just 2-for-12 with one home run in his first five MLB games at the end of last year.

While the New York Mets' designated hitter role is undefined heading into spring training, general manager Billy Eppler said that catching prospect Francisco Alvarez is not a candidate. As things stand now, the Mets will head into spring training with a DH platoon of Daniel Vogelbach and Darin Ruf. But Eppler won't commit to that platoon. Vogelbach had an .829 OPS against left-handed pitching in 2022, while Ruf had a weak .413 OPS against righties. The Mets think Ruf will bounce back in 2023, and he has a career .891 OPS against lefties. Some other candidates to see at-bats at DH this year include Pete Alonso, Tommy Pham and Eduardo Escobar. The Mets want Alvarez to focus on his framing and receiving skills as a catcher, which is why he won't be in the DH mix.

The New York Mets have been big spenders, but they also remain committed to the idea of building from within long term. Top prospects Francisco Alvarez and Brett Baty don't seem to have a very good chance to make this year's Opening Day roster, but the team is reluctant to trade them. The Miami Marlins have tried multiple times to acquire Baty and were prepared to offer one of their young starters in return. The Marlins came close to landing Brendan Rodgers from the Colorado Rockies in exchange for starter Edward Cabrera, but it ultimately fell through. Alvarez and Baty are both highly attractive in dynasty/keeper leagues and could also be worth stashing in deep mixed leagues in 2023. Alvarez has the better shot to crack the Opening Day roster because of his ability to play both catcher and outfield.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez and third baseman Brett Baty will both be given a realistic chance to make the Opening Day roster out of spring training. But with more opportunity in left field this year, Alvarez likely has the better chance to begin the 2023 season in the big leagues. When it looked like shortstop Carlos Correa was signing with the Mets, the Miami Marlins were interested in trading for Baty and infielder Eduardo Escobar. Alvarez is considered the No. 1 prospect in baseball heading into the 2023 season, per MLB Pipeline, so it makes sense for him to have a pretty good shot at starting the year with the Mets. Baty is the team's No. 2 prospect. Alvarez (five games) and Baty (11 games) got their feet wet in the Show in 2022, but they should both see much more playing time this year and are considered key future pieces in Queens.

The New York Mets have called up catching prospect Francisco Alvarez, and he's making his major-league debut on Friday against the Atlanta Braves and left-hander Max Fried. Alvarez is serving as the designated hitter and is batting seventh in the lineup. Alvarez is the top prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline, and the 20-year-old backstop will be thrown right into the fire after hitting a combined .260/.374/.511 with an .885 OPS, 27 home runs, 78 RBI and 74 runs scored in 112 games between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse this year on the farm. There's a chance he could struggle initially in his first time seeing big-league pitching, but Alvarez is certainly the future at the position for the Mets.

The New York Mets are calling up top catching prospect Francisco Alvarez ahead of their weekend series versus the Braves, which starts Friday. The report is that he would receive at-bats as the designated hitter against left-handers as a tune-up before the team enters the postseason. The 20-year-old is regarded as one of the top hitting prospects in all of baseball, and he slashed .260/.374/.511 with 27 homers in 112 games split between Double-A and Triple-A this season. It will be intriguing to see if Alvarez will get the nod Friday night with lefty Max Fried on the bump in a pivotal series in Atlanta, but it's too late for him to make any sort of impact in redraft leagues.

New York Mets catching prospect Francisco Alvarez (ankle), the top prospect in baseball per MLB Pipeline, has been diagnosed with a loose body in his right ankle, according to the team. The tentative plan is for Alvarez to resume baseball activities in three to four days. His return to play will be determined by his response to an injection and baseball activities. The good news is that it looks like he'll avoid surgery, at least for now. The 20-year-old hasn't played at Triple-A Syracuse since Aug. 23, but there's still a chance he can return for Syracuse before the end of the season. Fantasy managers in single-year leagues can pretty much abandon hope that he'll contribute down the stretch in the majors, especially since he's hit just .180 (20-for-111) with six homers and 21 RBI in 32 games for Syracuse since his promotion.