Francisco Alvarez returns, and Mets' London Series hero survives with corresponding roster move

Francisco Alvarez is officially back from the IL and he'll start Tuesday's New York Mets game against the Miami Marlins. Alvarez is a player that the Mets have been missing dearly, as New York has struggled mightily in his near two-month absence.

Alvarez's return is great news for the Mets and also puts an end to a question Mets fans have had since the team acquired Luis Torrens in an under-the-radar trade with the New York Yankees. The Mets had to decide to go with Torrens or Tomas Nido as Alvarez's backup.

It was trending in Torrens' direction as he has been an important piece for the Mets since his arrival, but the latest roster move confirmed it. Torrens is staying as Alvarez's backup and Nido has been DFA'd.

Francisco Alvarez's return ends Mets backup catcher competition

The Mets traded for Torrens, a player who had only played in the minor leagues this season with the Yankees, at the end of May. This trade felt like more of a move that they made just to ensure that they had a placeholder behind the dish until Alvarez returned since they had run out of patience with Omar Narvaez and DFA'd him. Instead of it being a short-term stay, Torrens exceeded everyone's expectations and has been playing great baseball since arriving.

It has only been six games, but Torrens has five hits in 16 at-bats (.313 BA) with two home runs and four RBI. In addition to his surprising offensive output, Torrens has thrown out three of the four base runners to attempt a stolen base. For reference, Narvaez threw out two baserunners all year in 35 attempts. Stolen bases were a big issue, but Torrens has combatted that.

Simply put, he played his way onto the roster. He stole the roster spot from Nido, a player who didn't even really deserve to lose it. Nido isn't known for his bat, but he had a .623 OPS in 32 games this season which is well above his career .564 OPS. His defense has been strong, as it usually is. Nido had been with the Mets for parts of the last eight seasons, but he has almost certainly played his last game with the team.

There's a good chance Nido will be claimed off of waivers considering just how many teams need catching help, but the Mets had to decide between the two since Torrens was out of options as well. They can only hope Torrens keeps up his high level of play and proves them right.