The New York Mets have recently turned things around after a rough start to the season. Carlos Mendoza's club is 11-8 after starting off 0-5.
The Mets have hit a slight bump in the road, though, as they placed catcher Francisco Alvarez on the 10-day IL Saturday with a sprained thumb. The club promoted Tomas Nido from Triple-A Syracuse to temporarily replace his spot, via Mike Puma of the New York Post. This comes on the heels of Nido's hot start for the minor-league outfit, via Rotowire.
“Nido was played well with Triple-A Syracuse, slashing .345/.345/.517 with two doubles, one home run and two RBI over 30 plate appearances this year,” said the Rotowire staff. “With Alvarez on the shelf, Nido will serve as the Mets' backup catcher behind Omar Narvaez.”
Will Nido get a chance to prove himself in Alvarez's absence, or will he merely be a depth piece?
Nido could be a crucial presence for the Mets depending on Alvarez's recovery
Alvarez has already gotten beat up by different ailments this season, via Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. While he sprained his thumb stumbling on the base paths on Friday, he also got hit in the mitt by Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Henry Davis's swing on Wednesday. Picking up two injuries in three days is taxing, so it might take some time for him to get back to full health.
Alvarez leaves decently large shoes to fill for the time being, as he had been earning respect around the clubhouse for his play and toughness.
“It takes a lot to get him out of a game,” Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor said, via DiComo. “I knew he was in extreme pain as soon as he came out of the game. I felt bad for him. I felt bad. I felt for him. I’ll be praying for him, and I know everyone in this clubhouse will be doing the same thing.”
So far, Alvarez has posted a slash line of 236/.288/.364 while also ranking in the 92nd percentile in Statcast's catcher framing metric. His framing prowess is especially invaluable, as getting more strike calls for their pitchers is one of the most impactful things a catcher can do.
While Nido will be behind Narvaez on the depth chart, he should still see time against left-handed pitchers. Nido bats from the right side, while Narvaez hits from the left. Furthermore, Narvaez is only hitting .217 this season, so he's not impossible for Nido to replace entirely, should the latter player get hot.
Nido sports a .213/.249/.308 career slash line in the big leagues, with 13 homers and 74 RBI across 747 at-bats. The Puerto Rican international has been in the Mets organization since he was selected by the club in the eighth round of the 2012 MLB Draft. He spent several years working his way up the minor league ranks before making his major-league debut on September 13th, 2017.
Now, Nido has a chance to finally stick at the top level for good after being sent back down last season. He may not be able to top Alvarez right away, but outperforming Narvaez throughout the next few games could go a long way toward him sticking around as New York's backup catcher.
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