SAN FRANCISCO — The rough countdown to Francisco Alvarez’s return to the Mets began on Tuesday when the catcher underwent surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb.
Alvarez is expected to require eight weeks of rehabilitation, with the earliest possible return to action being late June, the team said.
The second-year catcher tripped and pinched his thumb while rounding first base Friday at Dodger Stadium.
An MRI scan revealed a laceration.
Alvarez initially said his return timeline would be six to eight weeks, but it appears the Mets will play cautiously with him.
“We’re looking at eight weeks from where he’s going to play, and that’s on the left.” [thumb]” manager Carlos Mendoza said before the Mets’ 5-1 loss to the Giants at Oracle Park. “This is one of those situations where we have to be careful and I know he’s going to try to push it, but we have to make sure we get him back.”
In Alvarez’s absence, Omar Narváez (1 hit in 4) and Tomás Nido will take over the catcher duties.
Mendoza has said he intends to utilize both, but Narvaez, a left-handed swinger, could be responsible for most of the moves.
Alvarez will be able to resume baseball activities once his thumb has regained 80% strength.
Mendoza wants to keep Alvarez as close to the team as possible and make him feel like he still belongs.
“So he doesn’t feel like he’s not contributing, like the meetings and the energy that he brings,” Mendoza said. “This is one of the things we have to talk to him about every day to make sure he doesn’t push himself too hard.”
Max Kranik returned from injured reserve and was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse.
The left-hander, who suffered a hamstring injury in his first start of spring training, will provide additional rotational depth.
Joey Wendle (0-for-4, 2 strikeouts) will start at second base, Jeff McNeil (2-for-4) will be in left field, and the Mets will add a left-handed hitter to the starting lineup, with Harrison Bader on the bench. I sat down. Against Logan Webb.
Pete Alonso has come within one since joining the Mets’ 200 home run club.
Darryl Strawberry (252), David Wright (242) and Mike Piazza (220) are the only players to hit at least 200 home runs while wearing a Mets uniform.
The Mets had 159 strikeouts on the day, the third-fewest in the major leagues.
The team’s strikeout rate was 19.6 percent, the fifth-lowest in all of Major League Baseball.
