QUEENS, NY — Francisco Alvarez knows he is trying to do too much on the big stage that is the NLCS. Now he just needs to find a way to slow it all down.
The New York Mets’ catcher is 5-for-35 this postseason with 13 strikeouts, including a miserable stretch between Games 2 and 3 of the NLCS in which he stranded 10 runners on base in a span of four at-bats.
Wednesday night’s 8-0 loss in Game 3 featured three looking strikeouts for Alvarez, including one in the second inning with the bases loaded while the Mets trailed 2-0.
“I feel very late with the fastball,” Alvarez said as he explained the overarching issues with his mechanics. “I’m trying to get early with the fastball. I feel like that’s the problem. I can’t get early to it. So I have to be early with it so I can look better at the plate. I have to be early with my front foot and lead my shoulder through the ball… My hips are very fast… I have to stay close. I keep rushing and I’m using my hips so fast. So I have to slow down…
“I think sometimes I try to do too much… more than I can do. So I have to look at the bigger things — be on time with the fastball.”
Despite the major slump that has stymied the Mets’ offensive production, manager Carlos Mendoza immediately shut down any notion that the 22-year-old would be benched for Game 4 and beyond, stressing that he is going to stick with the guys that got New York to this point.
“I really appreciate Carlos saying that and giving me that confidence,” Alvarez said. “That is why we’re here in the playoffs. He gives confidence to every player. We feel very comfortable in the clubhouse, we feel very comfortable in the dugout. That is why we’re winning so many games.”
Alvarez has also had a parade of teammates coming to him to offer their support, including Francisco Lindor and Jesse Winker. The one that stuck out to him the most, though, was the usually tight-lipped Starling Marte.
“I was like, ‘Wow, he really loves me,'” Alvarez joked. “I feel like he talked to me from his heart. I really appreciate all my teammates and coaches, too.”
Warm sentiments aside, Alvarez is going through it in a sport that will always find the proverbial squeaky wheel. After all, he left seven on base in the Mets’ 7-3 Game 2 win in Los Angeles before getting that bases-loaded at-bat in the second inning on Wednesday.
Mendoza was adamant that “he’ll come through for us,” but entering Game 4 down 2-games-to-1, the ticking clock is starting to speed up.
“I don’t think it’s more pressure. It’s the same game,” Alvarez said. “I want to win every day. If we don’t win, we’ll get them the next day. If I don’t do good, I get them the next day. Today is another day. Yesterday was frustrating. Today is another day.”
