New York Mets rookie catcher Francisco Alvarez was forced to leave Sunday’s series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies during the sixth inning after getting hit in the hand three times by foul balls.
X-rays on his left middle finger came back negative in what Mets manager Buck Showalter described as a finger contusion.
“I’m sure two, but maybe all three hit him in the same place,” Showalter said. “He was in a lot of pain after the last one, but it was more at the nail I’m hoping. He’s been getting hit a lot lately.”
Two of those foul balls that struck Alvarez’s hand were off the bat of Brandon Marsh in the sixth inning, the final one immediately prompting Showalter and a trainer to come running out of the New York dugout to check on the 21-year-old. After a few moments, they scored the young catcher off the field.
“That’s just part of the game,” Alvarez said following the 5-2 loss (h/t SNY). “Every single time we go out on that field, we run the risk of something happening.”
This is the second time this month that Alvarez is dealing with an injury issue. He was struck on the right wrist by a Pablo Lopez fastball during a Sept. 10 game against the Minnesota Twins that forced him out of the game and kept him out of the following night’s lineup.
With the Mets off on Monday, more clarity involving Alvarez likely will not come until Tuesday as his side begins its final homestand of the season with a three-game set against the Miami Marlins. He had been mired in a recent 0-for-13 slump over his previous six games and is batting .211 with a .713 OPS, 23 home runs, and 57 RBI this season.
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