Francisco Alvarez showed glimpses of what he could become throughout the 2023 season, especially with the bat. His power is always going to draw the most headlines, but his ability to spray the ball all over the field in Saturday’s 7-6 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers may be a sign of things to come. For just the second time in his young career, the New York Mets’ catcher, Alvarez, collected at least three hits in a game.

The 22-year-old got the team on the board with a leadoff home run in the bottom of the second inning. Brewers starter DL Hall was filling up the strike zone, so Alvarez wasted no time, crushing a 77 mph curveball to left field. Just an inning later, he stepped up to the plate with runners on the corner and two outs. Alvarez worked himself into a full count, and on the seventh pitch of the at bat, he hit a 91 mph four-seam fastball up the middle, scoring Starling Marte.

Francisco Álvarez. Photo by Roberto Carlo

Hope for an improbable comeback felt all but done as the Mets entered the bottom of the eighth inning 7-2. The team needed to string a few hits together, and luckily, Marte and Alvarez were able to provide that. The later collected another single, this time to right field. A few minutes later, Alvarez’s good friend, Brett Baty, hit a pinch-hit, three-home run to get the Mets within two. This late surge would not result in a win, but one of the positive takeaways from that performance was Alvarez and his strong impact at the plate.

To the surprise of many, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza put the slugger in the seven hole on Saturday. If Alvarez continues to execute, it won’t be long before he is hitting toward the top of the order, giving much needed protection to three-time All-Star Pete Alonso. Can he raise his game as a pure hitter will be the biggest question. Álvarez slashed .209/.284/.437 (.721 OPS) across 423 plate appearances last season. Early returns suggest that he will be able to improve on those numbers in 2024.

The Mets will look to salvage the final game of their three-game set against the Brewers later today. For the Mets, the 28-year-old Tylor Megill will take the ball with veteran right-hander Colin Rea facing off against him. First pitch is set for 1:40 pm ET at Citi Field.