Francisco Alvarez's rapid injury recovery starkly contrasts another NY Mets player's rehab

The New York Mets are close to seeing one of their key hitters return from a meniscus tear, but they still haven’t announced a recovery timeline for another player with the same injury.

Catcher Francisco Alvarez tore his meniscus on May 12. At the time, manager Carlos Mendoza projected “hopefully” 6-8 weeks for Alvarez’s eventual return. Instead, the catcher has bounced back in time to beat even the most optimistic projection by half. He joined the Syracuse Mets’ starting lineup on June 2 to begin his rehab stint three weeks after sustaining his injury. (Alvarez went 2-for-3 with two doubles and an RBI, and he threw out a runner trying to steal second base in his first rehab outing.)

Meanwhile, New York still has not provided any meaningful update on outfielder Mike Tauchman. It has been more than two months since Tauchman suffered a torn meniscus of his own, but the last update on the veteran outfielder was in mid-May. The Athletic’s Tim Britton reported then that as of May 11, Tauchman still hadn’t returned to baseball activities.

Mike Tauchman has become a forgotten bat after a strong Spring Training

Before Tauchman tore his meniscus, he was the biggest threat to take Carson Benge’s roster spot – and starting job in right field. The Mets initially signed Tauchman to be one of a handful of outfielders to compete with the rookie for the chance to replace Juan Soto in the right corner as Soto moved to left.

In 13 appearances in the Grapefruit League, Tauchman was giving Benge a run for his money. Where the rookie was hitting for a better average in his higher volume of at bats, the 35-year-old veteran was showing off his power in a limited sample size. In 29 at bats during the spring, Tauchman had seven hits. Four of them – more than half – were for extra bases: three doubles and a home run. Benge, in 41 at bats, had one double and one triple sprinkled in with 13 singles.

Even once Benge had seemingly done enough to make the roster, Tauchman appeared to be a lock to make the initial 26-man squad as well. Though he may have started the season in a bench role behind starters Benge, Luis Robert Jr. and Soto, Tauchman proved he had plenty of value at the plate despite remaining unsigned until February.

Instead, Tauchman tore his meniscus. Benge became the starting right fielder, and Jared Young took Tauchman’s spot on the roster. Though both Benge and Young seem to have worked out, Young also suffered a torn meniscus in April in an unfortunate twist of fate, and he missed six weeks before returning on May 26. Fellow veteran MJ Melendez stepped into Young’s roster spot as Tauchman remained sidelined.

Is there still a spot for Mike Tauchman on the 2026 Mets?

Assuming Tauchman eventually returns to baseball activities, there still seems to be room for him on the active roster. Designated hitter/first baseman Jorge Polanco and Alvarez will likely beat him to an MLB return given they don’t experience setbacks in their respective rehab stints. But it’s easy to envision the former taking Eric Wagaman’s current spot and the latter taking over from Hayden Senger when they both recover.

That leaves two roster spots currently occupied by fringe contributors: infielder Vidal Brujan and the aforementioned Melendez in the outfield. Brujan’s designation for assignment will likely be the corresponding move when shortstop Francisco Lindor returns. If Melendez (or Young) struggles in June, either one of them could be optioned to get Tauchman a crack at a bench spot.

First, though, Tauchman needs to start making his comeback. Things are currently trending as though New York will have had two different players – Alvarez and Young – suffer their own meniscus injuries and return in between the last two times the Mets have rostered Tauchman. But if the veteran recovers soon, there is still a clear chance for him to be a notable contributor to the 2026 Mets this summer.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow