Francisco Alvarez among Mets prospects that impress in Triple-A season opener

The Syracuse Mets, the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate, began their 2023 season on Friday night and top prospect Francisco Alvarez, among others, impressed at the plate.

Hitting third and playing catcher, Alvarez went 2-for-4 including an RBI double and a run scored. He added a walk and somewhat surprisingly a stolen base, getting off to a hot start in Triple-A after a rather disappointing spring training. The team's No. 1 overall prospect also struck out twice.

Brett Baty – who did anything but disappoint during spring training, tearing the cover off the ball from start to finish – also had a double but ended the night 1-for-5 with two strikeouts and left five men on base, grounding into a double play in the third inning with runners on first and second and nobody out.

Batting cleanup and playing first base, Mark Vientos finished 1-for-4 with a walk but struck out three times. Right behind him, Ronny Mauricio went 1-for-5. In the fifth inning, the shortstop was called out on strikes to end the frame with runners on first and second.

Then in the seventh, after back-to-back singles by Alvarez and Vientos to lead off the inning, Mauricio grounded out to the pitcher but advanced both runners. Syracuse amassed 10 hits but only scored two runs and lost 11-2 in its season opener.