BOSTON — Every hitter has their habits they have to contend with, especially when they’re young and learning to navigate big league pitching. Francisco Alvarez wanted to eliminate his bad habits that he fell back on during his rookie and sophomore season slumps, so he overhauled his swing over the winter.
But then he was injured during spring training and had nothing to go on other than feel until he got healthy enough to swing a bat again. Now that he’s got 18 games under his belt this season, he’s feeling good about the changes he’s made to his swing, while understanding that no swing is truly slump-proof.
“My path is way better,” Alvarez told the Daily News on Tuesday at Fenway Park. “I don’t get flat, my legs are doing a better job. Sometimes I feel late, but I feel like it’s day-by-day.”
Alvarez started out May on a five-game hitting streak, but before he went 2-for-4 with a double Monday in a loss to the Boston Red Sox, he had gone five games without a hit. He walked twice in one of those games, so he wasn’t exactly disappointed in his at-bats, but with the Mets struggling to produce runs right now, they could use the power their catcher has displayed in the past.
However, he’s been late on fastballs in recent games, which has limited him to mostly singles and line drives, and even a few infield singles. While the hustle is appreciated, a few more extra-base hits and home runs would be as well.
“The one thing I’ve seen the past few days is he’s getting beat with fastballs,” said manager Carlos Mendoza. “And at this level, you’ve got to be able to hit the fastball. And he’s been a good fastball hitter, but again, I think he’s just late. Hitters are going to go through this, and he’s aware of it.”
Pitchers are aware of it too and they continue to throw him a steady stream of fastballs. Monday night, he hit one for a double, which was a positive indicator. So far this year, he’s hitting .303 on fastballs and he’s making hard contact. Though it’s a small sample size, his average exit velocity has increased, as has his hard-hit rate. But when Alvarez’s hips start to spin out, he hits a lot of pop-ups.
He’s not worried about a few days worth of at-bats though. As long as he’s healthy and stays healthy, he can figure out how to time fastballs once again.
“I don’t get frustrated just because I have two bad days,” Alvarez said. “I think it’s going to be some days that are good, [and] some days that are bad.”
The Mets are unconcerned.
“[Pitchers] are getting ahead and they continue to throw him fastballs, especially at the top of the zone with two strikes, so he’s going to have to make some adjustments,” Mendoza said. “That’s just part of 162 and he’s going through it right now.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
The Mets’ three injured starting pitchers are making progress, with right-hander Paul Blackburn expected to return in the coming days. Blackburn (right knee inflammation) will make one more rehab start Wednesday to continue building up his pitch-count. The plan is for him to throw about 80 pitches to be able to start games if the Mets decide to use a six-man rotation during the second half of June when they have a stretch of 13 games without an off-day.
Left-hander Sean Manaea (right oblique strain) will throw two simulated innings in a bullpen Wednesday. Right-hander Frankie Montas (right lat strain) will throw to Low-A Brooklyn hitters Wednesday. The two are both expected to make their season debuts in June.
