Mets’ Francisco Alvarez set to take BP on Saturday, still no timetable for return
Francisco Alvarez continues to progress well in his recovery from a thumb injury.
The Mets’ young star is officially set to take batting practice before Saturday’s game at Citi Field for the first time since injuring undergoing surgery 31 days ago.
Alvarez has been able to catch with a splint and he’s been participating in one-handed swinging drills, and now the team has decided that he’s ready to take the next step toward a potential return.
The 22-year-old remains without a timeline, as the team will wait and see how he feels after Saturday’s session, but a reasonable return date given his progress remains around the end of June.
“I feel good,” Alvarez said. “When everything feels 100 percent, I’ll come back.”
Tomas Nido has stepped up nicely for New York on both sides of the ball since taking over the bulk of the playing time in his place, but there's no denying getting Alvarez back would be a huge boost.
After popping 25 homers during his impressive rookie campaign, the youngster figures to slot in the middle of things behind veteran DH J.D. Martinez in the lineup.
He also handled the pitching staff well to begin the year and controlled the running game impressively throughout spring training.
While there's still a ways to go in his recovery, Saturday is shaping up to be another step in the right direction.
