Quietly, one of the best moves of the David Stearns’ tenure has been the acquisition of catcher Luis Torrens. Torrens has been tremendous since coming over from the New York Yankees for cash in May of 2024. So much so, he continues to make an extremely strong case for getting the majority of play time over his positional peer, Francisco Alvarez.

Torrens continued his strong 2025 season with a 2-for-4 day at the plate on Saturday against the Los Angeles Dodgers, scoring two runs in the Mets’ 5-2 victory. After a 99.2 mph single in the fourth inning, Torrens scored thanks to a Starling Marte infield single. Then, in the eighth inning, Torrens scored the insurance run after a Brett Baty double where he reached ahead of Baty thanks to a 107 mph a single.

On the season, Torrens is now slashing .276/.351/.437 (.787 OPS) across 87 at-bats. In addition to the strong play at the plate, his defensive acumen has been well documented, as he has been one of the best catchers in the league when it comes to throwing out runners. His 54% caught stealing rate is tops in the big leagues.

There is also even more of an argument that Torrens has been unlucky at the plate, meaning, with additional play time, those already strong offensive numbers could get even better. If Torrens was qualified, the 29-year-old catcher would rank above the league’s 98th percentile in xwOBA, xBA, xSLG, and hard-hit rate. Additionally, he has his walk rate well above the league average. All-in-all, analytically, factoring in offense and defense, he has been one of the best catchers in the big leagues this season.

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So, with all that being said, why isn’t Torrens playing more? Former Mets top prospect Francisco Alvarez has gotten the lion share of the play time since he returned from injury. However, in doing so, the 23-year-old catcher has struggled mightily. On the season, Alvarez is slashing .232/.321/.304 (.625 OPS), while also seeing a drop in his defensive game. Like Torrens, Alvarez has been throwing out runners at a strong clip, however, he is in the league’s ninth percentile in framing.

Taking a deeper dive into Alvarez’s offensive numbers, and comparing to them Torrens, furthers a troubling picture. Alvarez ranks in, or below, the league’s 10th percentile in xwOBA, xBA, and xSLG. He also has a strikeout rate, fueled by a whiff rate around the league’s second percentile, that is by far the highest of his career (29.5%, compared to a league average rate of 22.5%). It has been a struggle for Alvarez to make consistent contact this year, which continues a troubling trend dating back to 2024, after a promising 2023 debut season which saw the catcher slug 25 home runs.

The Mets find themselves in an extremely interesting position. Undoubtedly, from strictly a performance perspective, the right move would be to roll with Luis Torrens for the majority of the time at catcher with the young Alvarez backing him up. However, given how young Alvarez is, and the tools he comprises, riding the pine would likely not help an already struggling development.

If Torrens continues at the pace he does, riding Alvarez will be harder and harder. It certainly will be interesting to see how manager Carlos Mendoza decides to approach his backstop going forward.