Sending Alvarez to Triple-A 'not an easy decision' for Mets

PHILADELPHIA -- Francisco Alvarez, the talented, affable 23-year-old catcher who once rated as the No. 1 prospect in baseball, is going to work out his issues in the Minors.

Before their 7-1 loss to the Phillies on Sunday at Citizens Bank Park, the Mets optioned Alvarez to Triple-A Syracuse and recalled Hayden Senger to replace him. The move came with Alvarez batting just .236/.319/.333 in 35 games, though he homered in his final at-bat Saturday and had shown additional signs of life at the plate, including a .709 OPS in June. Still, Alvarez was striking out in more than a quarter of his plate appearances, while also demonstrating some defensive regression.

“Not an easy decision,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Something we don’t take lightly.”

General manager David Stearns declined comment on the move. Through a team spokesman, Stearns said he would address it on Tuesday.

Although the demotion of an everyday player is almost always surprising, Alvarez had appeared at risk for some time. Two years ago, in his age-21 season, Alvarez hit 25 homers. He took a step back last season and has been even less productive this year, struggling to translate a series of offseason swing changes into consistent success. Multiple hand and wrist injuries the past two years hampered his progress.

The move was not a reactive one, given Alvarez’s homer on Saturday. Instead, Mets officials took a longer view of the situation.

“There were stretches where we felt … ‘OK, that’s what it’s supposed to look like,’” Mendoza said. “But then he’ll go a couple of games where he’s late with the fastball and then he chases. So, just looking for consistency here.”

Defensively, Alvarez rates in the 8th percentile in Statcast’s framing metric, significantly below his usual standard as one of the game’s top framers. Mendoza specifically cited the catcher’s receiving and blocking as areas that need improvement.

For weeks, the Mets had resisted demoting Alvarez in part because of his potential. But his continued struggles, along with the organization’s desire to expand backup Luis Torrens’ role, prompted team officials to push the button Sunday.

The hope is that Alvarez will have an easier time improving given everyday at-bats in the Minors versus playing 2-3 times per week in the Majors.

“It’s not easy for me as a manager and for all of us as a coaching staff,” Mendoza said. “Having a player that talented here, it’s kind of [disappointing]. That’s how I take it. But it’s part of the process, part of the business. It’s not the first time. It’s not going to be the last time. At the end of the day, it came down to that’s what we feel is best for him.”

In Alvarez’s absence, Torrens will assume the role of starting catcher -- a job he handled well when Alvarez was on the injured list the past two seasons. Torrens’ best stretches as a Met have occurred when he’s received everyday reps. The 29-year-old veteran, who started Sunday, is batting .227/.303/.336 in 46 games.

“It’s the same approach,” Torrens said, noting that he was surprised to hear of Alvarez’s demotion. “It’s more about my approach about my body, taking care of my body because of the playing time. But mentally, it’s going to be the same.”

Senger, 28, is a defensive expert who spent time in the Majors earlier this year. He’ll back up Torrens, as he did earlier this year when Alvarez was on the IL.

The Mets aren’t likely to pursue catching help from outside the organization at this juncture. Instead, they will keep close tabs on how Alvarez is performing at Triple-A Syracuse, in hopes that he can help them during the second half of the season.

By that point, the Mets expect to be well beyond their current rough patch of eight losses in nine games, which has included precious little production from their catchers.

“There’s a lot of potential there, and when he’s playing up to his potential, he’s got a chance to be a pretty special player,” Mendoza said. “And we’re going to need him. We expect him to be back. But right now, we feel like it’s best for him to go down there and get reps.”