The New York Mets on Saturday placed catcher Francisco Alvarez on the 10-day injured list because of a torn ligament in his thumb that will require surgery, manager Carlos Mendoza announced on Saturday night. On Sunday, Alvarez said he needs surgery and will miss 6-8 weeks (via Newsday), putting him on track to return in early-to-mid June.
In corresponding moves, the club recalled catcher Tomas Nido from Triple-A and designated left-hander Kolton Ingram for assignment in order to create a spot on the 40-man roster for Nido. During Alvarez's absence, Omar Narváez is likely to be the Mets' regular behind the plate.
Alvarez suffered the injury in the second inning of Friday night's eventual win over the Dodgers when he stumbled while rounding first base and put his left hand down to brace himself. Here's a look at the play:
Francisco Alvarez is staying in the game after appearing to re-injure his thumb running the bases: pic.twitter.com/zMwLGAbuZj
— SNY (@SNYtv) April 20, 2024
On the young season, the 22-year-old Alvarez has a slash line of .236 AVG/.288 OBP/.364 SLG with one home run in 16 games. He's a core member of the Mets, and he's not far removed from being one of the top prospects in all of baseball. For his brief career, Alvarez has an OPS+ of 95 across parts of three big-league seasons.
Alvarez's injury comes as the Mets have won six games in a row and pushed their record to 12-8 after a slow start to 2024.
