3 Mets players most responsible for getting the team back to .500

3) NY Mets are back to .500 thanks to Francisco Alvarez

Mark Vientos may be the good luck charm of the Mets, but it’s Francisco Alvarez who has now homered in two straight games. He didn’t play on Thursday, however, two big home runs in the most recent dramatic endings have solidified Alvarez’s place on the Mets roster.

It doesn’t matter if Tomas Nido comes back with x-ray vision and can shoot lasers out of his retinas. Alvarez needs to stay.

The tying home run on Wednesday and another to get the scoring started on Friday against the Cleveland Guardians might have been enough to add him to this list. His biggest hit came in the tenth with two outs. Down to their last strike, Alvarez knocked in Eduardo Escobar with a single against Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase. He was the one to come across the plate on Lindor’s single in what has become a growing trend for the Mets.

Hitting out of the ninth spot has given the Mets a nice spark at the bottom. The debate may rage for him to move up in the order and you’re not wrong if you believe this is what should happen. The benefit of hitting him low does show. He can clean up the bases or keep a rally going better than some of the veterans. Alvarez’s time to hit closer to the middle of the order will come around. Right now, the recipe calls for him to remain in the number nine spot.