RADIO
Francisco Alvarez Gets Off to Good Start in Second Half With Two Homers
New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez made his presence felt out of the nine-hole to kick off the second half of the 2026 season on Thursday night at Citizens Bank Park in a 4-1 win over the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies. Alvarez went 2-for-3 at the plate with two solo home runs, a walk, and a strikeout to boost his season average to .259 and his OPS to .773. Since returning from a torn meniscus in his knee, Alvarez has been swinging a hot bat, hitting .280 with seven home runs and 14 RBI in 100 at-bats. His multi-homer performance on Thursday was his first of the season and the seventh of his career. The Venezuelan backstop is now hitting .259/.325/.448 with 11 home runs and 24 RBI in 236 plate appearances for the Mets. Fantasy managers who need power at catcher can find Alvarez widely available off the waiver wire, as he's currently rostered in only 18% of Yahoo leagues. Injuries have been a big part of the 24-year-old's career so far, but don't forget that he hit 25 long balls in only 123 games in his first full season in 2023. He has already matched his homer total in each of the last two seasons.
Source: MLB.com
Source: MLB.com
