Francisco Alvarez is getting his shot with the New York Mets this year earlier than expected, and with that he is an instant must-add in fantasy baseball leagues.
With catcher Omar Narvaez likely headed for the IL after being injured Wednesday, the New York Mets proactively had top prospect Francisco Alvarez en route to Citi Field for Thursday’s home opener that wound up rescheduled to Friday.
With Thursday’s news Narvaez is expected to miss eight to nine weeks with a left calf strain, Tim Healey of Newsday reported the Mets indeed plan to call up Alvarez for Friday’s home opener against the Miami Marlins.
Mike Puma of the New York Post subsequently reported Tomas Nido would start Friday’s game behind the plate for the Mets. But the expectation is Alvarez will become the primary catcher.
The Mets plan to call up Francisco Alvarez prior to their home opener tomorrow, a source said.
— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) April 6, 2023
Unclear how playing time with Alvarez and Tomas Nido will sort out, but team officials were consistent during camp: If Alvarez is in the majors, they want him to catch regularly. https://t.co/A1xwXNVW4F
Alvarez made his major league debut last season, with a home run and two hits over 14 plate appearances (five games). He also appeared in a postseason game, but now he’s in line for a real chance to come to the big leagues and stay for good.
Mets: Francisco Alvarez is instant must-add off the fantasy baseball waiver wire
It’s clear Alvarez’s bat is major league-ready. He hit 27 home runs and drove in 78 in the minors last year (Double-A and Triple-A), with a .260/.374/.511 slash-line, a 14.1 percent walk rate and 136 wRC+. The question, as it usually is for young catchers, is defense and that put him Triple-A to start this season.
Alvarez hit two home runs in four games for Triple-A Syracuse this season. But perhaps more importantly, and yes it is a small sample, he has thrown out three of five runners who’ve attempted to steal against him.
Even after Narvaez returns to health, the Mets should have room in the lineup for Alvarez’s bat as a DH … assuming he hits as expected. Over the next eight to nine weeks, the opportunity is there for him to just take the number one catcher job and never give it back.
As of Friday morning, Alvarez is rostered in 3.1 percent of ESPN leagues and 28 percent of Yahoo! leagues. Those percentages are sure to change quickly, and any fantasy manager who doesn’t have one of the top-tier catchers should regard Alvarez as a practical must-add. Just be aware he may only be utility or DH-eligible out of the gate.