Paul Articulates – A tough call on Francisco Alvarez

The Mets made a very difficult decision on Sunday.  They optioned Francisco Alvarez to Syracuse and called up Hayden Senger to back up Luis Torrens.

Why was this difficult?  Well for starters, Alvarez was one of those “baby Mets” that rocketed through the minor league system and debuted in the majors by playing some very good baseball.   Fans very quickly picked up on him as a hopeful candidate for a superior catcher that had power, a strong arm, and great rapport with the pitching staff.  People had visions of Gary Carter or Mike Piazza, so expectations were through the roof.

Soon there were setbacks, but much was blamed on injuries, and coming back too soon from injuries.  It was never about talent.  Personally, I thought he was going to be a tremendous add to the roster because he showed a strong work ethic and the ability to quickly improve his skills when a deficiency was identified.

But this time, when Alvarez was sent down it was not due to any known injury.  It was a performance issue.  His hitting has regressed, and his defense was costing the team runs.  This was a more difficult decision than most because he had spent enough time in the majors to establish himself as THE catcher.  

To send him down was to admit that the development and coaching staffs had failed to shape him into the player that his potential said he could be.  Many major league teams are not capable of making that type of visible admission to their fan base.  They would just let their guy “play through it”.

I applaud David Stearns, Carlos Mendoza, and Glen Sherlock for doing the right thing with Alvarez, who is still just a “kid” at the age of 23.  He had developed some very bad habits – an exaggerated uppercut in his swing, a tendency to swipe at balls to frame them instead of catching the ball first, and an immobile stance behind the plate that prohibited blocking balls in the dirt.  These are all correctable faults, and when corrected can lead to greater realization of his potential – which is very high.

Will this hurt the Mets?  I would argue that they are already hurt by the lost production and the defensive lapses.  Torrens is not better than Alvarez’ ceiling, but he is better than Alvarez’ floor.

The Mets of previous eras made many short term decisions that cost them dearly.  This regime is making good long term decisions that should benefit the club in the future.  Giving up Alvarez in the lineup for a few weeks in June is much better than destroying his confidence and trying to fix that in September.

I hope Francisco gets it back.  I hope it happens in time to have a positive impact on this season.  Good call, Mets!