MMO 2020 Top 30 Mets Prospects: No. 3 Francisco Alvarez, C

Francisco Alvarez/Photo by Ed Delany, MMO

3. Francisco Alvarez, C

B/T: R/R Age: 18 (11/19/91)
Height: 5’11” Weight: 220 lbs
Acquired: Signed as an International Free Agent in 2018 (Guatire, Venezuela)
ETA: 2023 Previous Rank: 14
2019 Stats (GCL/Kingsport): .312/.407/.510, 10 2B, 7 HR, 26 RBI, 20.3% K, 11.5 BB%, 155 wRC+

Francisco Alvarez was widely regarded as one of the top 15 international prospects in 2018 IFA Class [Baseball America (9th), Fangraphs(10th), MLB.com (15th)] and the Mets paid him as such with a team record $2.7 Million signing bonus besting the previous record held by Ronny Mauricio from the previous year’s class. As with any high priced international signing though, with bust rates being so high in the IFA market, you don’t really know what you’re getting until the player finally hits the field. Luckily for the Mets, it seems they have struck a giant pot of gold here with Alvarez.

During his workouts in 2018 and extended spring training in 2019, Alvarez displayed a stunningly advanced feel for the game at his young age both offensively and defensively behind the plate. His strong bat-to-ball skills, tremendous opposite field power, and ability to hit to all parts of the field, paired with his unbelievable physical maturity at only 17 years old made skipping the Dominican Summer League and assigning him to the Gulf Coast League Mets an easy choice.

A day after homering on the anniversary of his signing (below), #Mets catching prospect Francisco Alvarez has his first three-hit game as a pro.

He’s hitting .462 with a 1.394 OPS in 7 games in the GCL. pic.twitter.com/eWWiwmPRrc

— Jacob Resnick (@Jacob_Resnick) July 3, 2019

Even so, no one could have anticipated how easily Alvarez would handle the GCL. In one week of play (seven games), Alvarez posted multi-hit games on five occasions reaching base safely in 16 of his 31 plate appearances (.548 OBP), including, six extra-base hits (.385 ISO), eight runs scored, and 10 RBIs.

The obliteration of GCL pitching prompted the club to quickly promote him to the more advanced rookie level in Kingsport. As with any promotion, it should be expected that there will be an performance adjustment period where the player struggles against the tougher competition. For Alvarez though, this adjustment only took a mere three days (0-for-10).

For the next month, from July 8th to August 5th, Alvarez would string together a 16-game hitting streak, hitting .417/.470/.650, with a 1.036 OPS, including eight multi-hit games, five extra-base hits, and 15 runs scored.

His offensive prowess wasn’t the only thing that impressed last season either. Defensively, Alvarez displayed impressive arm strength, handled the pitching staff incredibly well despite his age, and was widely praised for his work ethic and enthusiasm.

“That’s what shocked me when I found out he was 17…You don’t see kids that young who can catch that well usually. Tremendous arm strength, and (he) shut down our running game.” – anonymous Appalachian League manager per Baseball America.

Despite multiple attempts via prospect trades and high draft picks, (Kevin Plawecki, Tomas Nido, Travis d’Arnaud, Josh Thole) its been a long time since the Mets have successfully developed a good starting-caliber catching prospect. Alvarez’s profile and performance gives the organization some hope that they can finally achieve this AND potentially develop themselves an All-Star caliber player.