The Mets have their heartbeat back. And finally, their lineup is complete.
Catcher Francisco Alvarez was activated off the injured list on Tuesday and promptly returned to the lineup for the team’s 4-2 loss to the Marlins at Citi Field.
He hit eighth and started behind the plate, going 0-for-3.
Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez, who was playing in his first game since returning from the IL, wears a frustrated expression during the Marlins’ two-run fifth which turned the game around in their favor. Jason Szenes for New York PostHe also made a throwing error, which helped set up the Marlins’ fourth run.
Alvarez, formerly the Mets’ top prospect, and one of the best prospects in all of MLB now in his second year, had been out since April 19 after tearing a ligament in his left thumb.
The Mets DFA’d Tomas Nido as the corresponding roster move.
“Energy,” manager Carlos Mendoza said of what Alvarez adds to the lineup beyond his skill set. “Energy not only behind the plate, but in the locker room and in the dugout. He’s very intense. He’s competing every pitch He’s on the guys all the time. It’s good to have him back.”
Designated hitter J.D. Martinez began the season in the minors, as he was signed late in March and did not have a spring training to ramp up.
And before Martinez joined the MLB roster, Alvarez was already sidelined with the injury.
Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez is returning from injury for Tuesday’s game. Robert Sabo for NY PostAs a result, Tuesday marked the first time both were in the lineup, though both had quiet nights.
Alvarez had gotten off to a slow start to the season before his injury, entering Tuesday hitting .236/.288/.364 with a .652 OPS.
He notably hit just one home run in 59 plate appearances after slugging 25 as a rookie last year.
The Mets designated Tomas Nido for assignment. Corey Sipkin for the NY POSTAlvarez will wear a splint on his left hand, which he said he could stop using in a few weeks if he feels good. It’s “a bit more uncomfortable” while hitting than catching, he said.
Receiving pitches behind the plate is what Alvarez said took the longest to be pain-free, however.
He winced after taking a foul tip off his glove in the fifth inning Tuesday, but Mendoza said that he’s “fine.”
Luis Torrens will be the Mets’ backup catcher. Charles Wenzelberg/New York PostAlvarez said he missed playing “a lot.”
“I felt bored every day when I started to do my rehab because I couldn’t do anything,” Alvarez said. “When I started to do a little bit more, I started to feel a little bit better. When I started hitting, throwing, I felt better.”
Nido and Luis Torrens, whom the Mets acquired from the Yankees last month for cash, had filled in ably at catcher.
But Torrens won the backup job, which resulted in Nido’s 12-year Mets tenure — between the minors and majors — coming to an end.
“It was a tough one,” Mendoza said of the decision. “I’ve been saying it the past week, we’re facing a really difficult decision here because of the two guys that were playing. Obviously Nido did a hell of a job.
“With a guy like Nido, who has been in this organization for a long time, he means a lot to this team and a lot of guys in that room. Nothing but respect for him.”
