Devastating Omar Narvaez injury could actually be a positive for Mets

The New York Mets acquired Omar Narvaez this offseason, and proceeded to trade James McCann. Now, Narvaez is injured, but that could be a good thing long-term.

We would never wish injury upon any player, especially a former All-Star like Narvaez who was just acquired by the New York Mets in the offseason.

Narvaez is expected to miss 8-to-9 weeks, per the team, due to a left calf injury. He had been the team’s starting catcher, but Tomas Nido will take over short-term as the main replacement.

In the absence of Narvaez, New York is expected to call up their No. 1 prospect, Francisco Alvarez. While Alvarez does have some MLB experience, this will be an excellent chance for him to make a lasting impression on fans. Should he succeed, he may never go back to the minors.

Omar Narvaez injury: Mets could call up Francisco Alvarez

Narvaez left Wednesday’s game as a precaution, but it turned out to be a much worse injury than he realized.

“I felt tightness,” Narvaez said at the time. “I’d rather call it for a day and be safe for the next day. I couldn’t put myself at risk for the whole season. I wasn’t going to play the hero.”

Meanwhile, Alvarez was called up to the New York roster just in case Narvaez was out long-term. Now, that appears to be the case, meaning Alvarez will receive more MLB at-bats. The No. 1 prospect had a 1.056 OPS with two homers in four games in Triple-A, so if he can translate some of that offensive success to the big leagues, he’ll quickly become a fan favorite in Queens.

Despite not making the MLB roster out of spring training, Alvarez handled the moment well.

“The first thing that came to mind [Wednesday] was I need to go back down there and work hard and prove myself so they can call me back up eventually,” Alvarez said.

New York begins a homestand on Friday, where Alvarez could be in a position to make his MLB debut.