Weekly Statistical Spotlight: Francisco Alvarez

El Troll! It looks like Francisco Alvarez is emerging from his lengthy slump. Last week, for games from September 9 to September 14, Francisco Alvarez slashed .278/.316/.579 with a .895 OPS. He smashed two home runs, one off the Blue Jays and one off the Phillies. Alvarez’s primary strength at the plate is his power, and it is great to see him getting his power swing back. This week’s Statistical Spotlight features Francisco Alvarez and his plate approach for last week’s games.

Alvarez did a good job at protecting the inside part of the plate. Both of his home runs came off of pitches that were on the inner half of the plate, one which could have been a ball. Alvarez saw success off of different types of pitches homering off both a fastball up in the zone and a knuckle curve inside. He was also able to produce singles from a fastball, cutter, and sinker.

 

One area of struggle for Alvarez has been connecting with pitches away in the zone. Often Alvarez would chase off-speed pitches, particularly sliders, that would ride away from him outside the zone.  This was frequently seen during his slump, as pitchers would attack this location against Alvarez. Now that Alvarez has been getting his swing back on inside pitches, look for him to stretch his zone to cover pitches that are away and off-speed.  If he can do this, Alvarez can be one of the most fearsome bats in the Mets line-up.  

It’s great to see Alvarez finding his groove again. When he’s hot, he’s a formidable batter in the lineup, something the Mets will need going into a gauntlet against the Phillies and Braves. Having a confident Alvarez back is not only fun to watch, but crucial for this Mets lineup and their postseason chances. As Alvarez’s swing is coming back to life, look for the Mets to rally around their young superstar.  

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