New York, May 27, 2025
Mets’ Alvarez Cracked the fastball Code-and his Swing Changed Drastically too Do It
Table of Contents
A series of adjustments, born from a mid-season demotion and a frustrating hand injury, unlocked Francisco Alvarez’s power potential in the second half of 2025.
- Francisco Alvarez struggled with fastballs early in the 2025 season, leading to a demotion to Triple-A.
- A complex series of swing adjustments, including stance and timing changes, helped him dramatically improve his performance against velocity.
- Despite multiple hand injuries, Alvarez showed meaningful progress in the latter half of the season, notably in driving the ball to the opposite field.
- His ability to adjust and improve will be a key factor in the Mets’ success in 2026.
The New York Mets’ future success may hinge on the bat of Francisco Alvarez, and the 24-year-old catcher appears to have found a groove. His weighted runs created plus (wRC+) was a top-15 mark in the Majors over the final nine weeks of 2025, among hitters with at least 150 plate appearances. But the path to this resurgence was anything but straightforward.
From demotion to Finding
The Mets demoted Alvarez to the Minors last June, seeking improvements on both sides of the ball. The focus, however, was squarely on his hitting, specifically his struggles against fastballs.”He’s just being inconsistent, especially in being on time to hit the fastball,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said in May. “That’s the biggest thing. … One thing we’ve seen here is him not get to a position to pull the trigger and make good swing decisions.”
Early in the season, analysts had observed that Alvarez wasn’t “in a good position to swing,” allowing pitchers to throw fastballs past him. This translated to being late at the point of contact. Statcast’s attack direction metric-measuring bat movement on a horizontal plane-revealed a highly “oppo”-oriented swing early in the season, moving the bat 8° to right field. This inside-out approach hindered his ability to drive the ball, resembling a slap hitter.
From June onward, Alvarez’s attack direction shifted to 1° to the opposite field-essentially neutral. This indicated improved timing and a greater ability to square up pitches.
In 2024, Mets hitting coach Eric Chavez noted Alvarez was overly focused on pulling home runs. While pulling is a common power source, Alvarez’s physique demanded a different approach. To drive the ball effectively, he needed to be on plane and on time.
The Results Speak for Themselves
The adjustments paid off. Alvarez’s slugging percentage on opposite-field batted balls soared from .652/.548 (SLG/expected SLG) in the first 35 games to 1.233/ .958 in the final 41 games. From July 1 through the end of the season, only Oakland’s Nick Kurtz had a higher slugging percentage and expected slugging percentage on opposite-field hits (minimum 30 batted balls).
Alvarez against velocity
First 35 games:.343 SLG and 31.6% whiff rate
Last 41 games: .690 SLG and 15.1% whiff rate
Despite two additional hand injuries in August-a torn thumb ligament and a fractured pinky-Alvarez’s progress was undeniable. The changes he made appear to have worked, offering a promising outlook for his future with the Mets’ revamped lineup.
