The start of the 2023 Major League Baseball season has been a forgettable one for the Mets, but there might be at least one bright spot for their home opener Friday.
New York lost closer Edwin Díaz before the season due to a freak injury while celebrating Puerto Rico’s World Baseball Classic win March 16, while Justin Verlander started the season on the injured list due to a strain in his upper arm.
The Mets are 3-4 in the first seven games of the year and lost catcher Omar Narváez in Wednesday’s loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. The team announced Thursday the 31-year-old suffered a medium to high-grade strain of his left calf and is expected to miss eight-to-nine weeks.
But Mets fans at Citi Field might get to see the team’s top prospect get his shot at the majors earlier than anticipated. New York is expected to call up Francisco Álvarez to replace Narváez, and the 21-year-old will start in the team’s home opener against the Miami Marlins, according to The Athletic and Newsday.
Álvarez, who also is the top prospect in MLB, according to MLB Pipeline, had a brief stint with the Mets last season. He played five games and went 2-for-12 at the plate with one home run and one RBI.
The catcher has had a strong start with Triple-A Syracuse. He’s slashed .250/.368/.688 in four games and has two homers and four RBIs.
Narváez was stable defensively for New York, which is a hole Álvarez will have to fill, but the Mets have struggled offensively with a bottom-five team batting average just seven games into the season.
Álvarez will be depended upon to bring some positivity to a team that had lofty ambitions prior to the season.
