Francisco Alvarez doubles in Syracuse rehab debut for Mets

Francisco Alvarez wasted no time making his rehab debut count, lining a double in his first at-bat for Triple-A Syracuse and putting an immediate jolt into the Mets’ catching picture. The hit came against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders and gave Syracuse an early look at the big-league bat the Mets have been waiting to get back.

The return moved faster than the Mets originally expected. Alvarez went on the 10-day injured list May 13 with a torn right meniscus and had surgery May 14, but he was back in game action just over two weeks later after the club initially projected about an eight-week absence. Carlos Mendoza said Alvarez had already been doing full baseball work, including hitting, catching bullpen sessions, blocking, running and throwing, and called the recovery “pretty amazing” so soon after surgery.

“As of right now, the plan is for him to play Tuesday in Syracuse,” Mendoza said.

Before the injury, Alvarez had played 37 games and hit .241/.317/.393 with four home runs and 10 RBI. Those numbers did not match his full potential, but the power and on-base ability were still part of the Mets’ offensive core from behind the plate. A clean rehab debut, especially one that started with extra bases, gives the organization a real sign that the bat is coming back along with the body.

Alvarez’s assignment also arrived as part of a broader Mets injury return cycle in Syracuse. Kodai Senga had already started rehab work there, and Jorge Polanco was moving from Double-A Binghamton to Triple-A Syracuse after beginning his own rehab assignment May 27. The Mets were lining up multiple reinforcements at once, with Syracuse becoming the main stop on the way back to Queens.

For Syracuse, Alvarez’s presence was the kind of development that changes a homestand instantly: a top major league catcher, back in uniform, testing the final steps of a recovery in front of a Triple-A crowd. For the Mets, the first swing mattered as much as the scoreline. A double in the first at-bat suggested Alvarez is not just returning, he is pushing to beat the timetable by a wide margin.