Mets catcher Alvarez to miss 6-8 weeks with fractured left hand

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- The Mets¡¯ lineup was dealt a blow this weekend, as Francisco Alvarez suffered a fractured hamate bone in his left hand, an injury that will require surgery.

Alvarez is expected to miss 6-8 weeks, though given that the injury is to his receiving hand, the catcher¡¯s absence will likely stretch to the longer end of that estimate.

¡°I think that's probably where we set our expectations,¡± president of baseball operations David Stearns said. ¡°But we would expect him back in Major League competition at that point."

This marks the second straight year that a fluky left hand injury has sidelined Alvarez, who missed nearly eight weeks last season with a torn ligament in his left thumb, which he suffered after slipping on the basepath during a game on April 19.

¡°He's down, obviously, but it's not the first time,¡± manager Carlos Mendoza said. ¡°It sucks for him. He takes it personal and he takes it hard; he cares. We¡¯ll do everything that we can in our power to stay positive with him and get him back on the field as soon as possible.¡±

This latest injury took place while Alvarez was taking live at-bats at the Mets¡¯ complex on Saturday. He felt something after taking a swing during his second at-bat, immediately retreating to the trainers' room. An X-ray later revealed the fracture, for which the 23-year-old will undergo surgery on Monday.

¡°It¡¯s always tough when one of your guys goes down like that,¡± Mendoza said. ¡°We¡¯ve got to keep going. Nobody's going to feel sorry for us. Everybody deals with injuries. We'll get him back.¡±

Luis Torrens will assume starting catching duties in Alvarez¡¯s absence, while Hayden Senger, Jakson Reetz and Chris Williams will be candidates to serve as the backup.

¡°It¡¯s an opportunity for someone else to step up,¡± Mendoza said. ¡°There's a reason why they're here. Senger is a really good defensive catcher, Reetzy has got some big league experience. These guys can handle a pitching staff, they can receive, so we feel good.¡±

Reetz made his case in a big way on Sunday, crushing a grand slam in the first inning of the Mets' 7-6 win over the Nationals.

Stearns said the Mets could look outside the organization for catching help, as well, though he believes there is enough depth to carry the load while Alvarez is out.

¡°I think we feel good about the guys we have in camp,¡± Stearns said. ¡°Any time you have an injury to a regular player, you're going to see what's out there; but we don't anticipate this being an extremely lengthy injury.¡±

The Mets have already dealt with other injuries this spring, the two most notable being starting pitchers Sean Manaea (strained right oblique) and Frankie Montas (right lat strain), who will both open the season on the injured list.

Brandon Nimmo has been battling right knee soreness that required a gel injection on Friday, though he is expected to resume baseball activities early this week. Starling Marte is also dealing with a knee issue of his own, one that has kept him from playing in games to this point in the spring. Marte has been taking live at-bats, but is still likely a few days away from making his spring debut.

While Nimmo and Marte remain hopeful that they will be ready for Opening Day, Alvarez¡¯s injury will keep him out of action for at least the first month of the regular season.

¡°He's a team leader, so any length of absence is unfortunate,¡± Stearns said. ¡°We also know he's going to be back; this is a relatively standard injury. We've gone through these before here, so we'll be able to weather it.¡±