Francisco Alvarez stayed in the game.
But that’s not because the New York Mets catcher was feeling perfectly OK. He took a nasty, injury-inducing blow to the head from Phillies outfielder Justin Crawford on Thursday night.
Specifically, it was Crawford’s follow-through with his bat that crushed Alvarez right in the front of his mask.
Crawford actually made contact, and with Alvarez staying down, pitcher Christian Scott ran over to make a great catch of the pop-up.
Justin Crawford got Francisco Álvarez in the mask with his bat pic.twitter.com/FxNlgGjOcQ
— Mets’d Up Podcast (@MetsdUp) July 16, 2026
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Alvarez got checked out by a trainer and his manager, and he ended up staying in the game.
He probably wasn’t feeling 100%, though, and it’ll be something to monitor.
Alvarez got his night off to a better start than this. He entered the game 3-for-8 in his career against Aaron Nola with a home run. And in his first at bat against the Phillies’ righty, Alvarez went deep:
Francisco Alvarez puts the @Mets in front with a solo shot 💪 pic.twitter.com/GPtYDmzz8n
— MLB (@MLB) July 16, 2026
So a homer, then a whack to the face. Alvarez might not have wanted the latter, but he’ll certainly take the homer.
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