NEW YORK — The Citi Field trainer’s room has been crowded all season, and there is little reprieve halfway into May. The New York Mets placed catcher Francisco Alvarez on the 10-day injured list Wednesday afternoon with a torn meniscus in his right knee. The injury will require surgery, which typically carries a timeline of 6-8 weeks, but the Mets aren’t ready to commit to a timeline until Alvarez has had the procedure.

Alvarez appeared to injure his knee during an at-bat Tuesday night in a 10-2 win over the Detroit Tigers.

“It was weird, we knew right away when he came out of the game because the past couple of years with the injuries, like when he [injured his thumb] sliding on the bases, he stayed in there. He tries to fight, and then he comes out,” manager Carlos Mendoza said Wednesday afternoon at Citi Field. “But yesterday, right away, me and Joe [Golia], the trainer, we knew something wasn’t right for him to come out of the game like that. But he didn’t report anything until that swing right there.”

It’s yet another blow to a lineup that hasn’t been at full strength since Opening Day, and the third meniscus tear suffered by a hitter since March. Mike Tauchman tore his during a spring training game, and Jared Young underwent surgery for a torn meniscus in early April. Tauchman still isn’t doing much, and Young is in Florida, getting ready to start a rehab assignment later this week or early next.

Given that three players have suffered the same injury, plus two others had calf strains, Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor, the latter of whom is currently on the IL, the Mets have looked into whether or not there is a correlation between the injuries and their training programs. They don’t believe that to be the case at the moment, but it will certainly invite outside scrutiny.

“I think we’re always looking, especially as guys continue to get hit with the same injury, but it’s hard to pinpoint,” Mendoza said. “The way it happened too, one swing on a guy that doesn’t report anything, and he takes a swing and he goes down with the knee. But yes, we’ve got to go back and see what, if anything, if there’s something that we’re doing that’s affecting guys.”

Alvarez has been injury-prone since he was a prospect in the minor leagues, requiring ankle surgery before his September 2023 call-up. He’s made three trips to the injured list, once in 2024 for left thumb ulnar collateral ligament surgery, and twice in 2025 for hamate surgery and a sprained UCL in his right thumb. In addition, he’s had to sit out other games with shoulder and elbow soreness.

The Mets have been hesitant to sign the 24-year-old Alvarez to a long-term contract in part because of injuries, and in part because of his inconsistent play, some of which is likely a result of injuries. Once billed as a generational power-hitting backstop with the defense to match the bat, frequent trips to the IL have hindered his development. It’s hard to know how to fully assess a player who hasn’t managed to stay healthy for a full season.

At times, Alvarez has looked as though he could be a real leader in the clubhouse. A popular, gregarious figure, Alvarez is typically always upbeat, often hyping guys up before big games. As a rookie, he cooked for his teammates on off days. In more recent years, he’s been the one to joke with players when he sees them going through tough stretches.

The problem is that he has to be able to stay in the Major League clubhouse to fully grow into those responsibilities.

Offensively, the power has come in fits and spurts. After a hot start at the plate this season, Alvarez cooled significantly around mid-April. By the end of the month, his OPS had dropped below .700. He’s found his stride at the plate again this month, hitting .310 with two doubles, three RBI and two walks since April 30.

Defensively, his framing and blocking improved for a few years, but he’s struggled again with that this season, leading the league with five passed balls. For his career, he’s thrown out only 16.9% of baserunners attempting to steal. Backup catcher Luis Torrens and Triple-A catcher Hayden Senger, who was called up to take Alvarez’s spot on the roster, have been the better defensive backstops.

“The past three years, he’s always been injured,” Mendoza said. “It’s like, OK, he struggles, [then] he gets hot, but then he gets hurt and misses significant time. Yeah, there’s the development, obviously, but you feel for the person because he cares so much, and he works extremely hard.”

At this point, the Mets may not have their optimal lineup on the field before the All-Star break. The team seems to have accepted that. Mendoza seems to have had more say in the lineup construction in recent weeks, and finally, they dropped their strict platoon rules Wednesday against Detroit left-hander Framber Valdez, using left-handed hitters Carson Benge, Brett Baty and A.J. Ewing in the starting lineup.

If they’re going to make up ground in the standings, they may have to rethink their approach to run production, relax their pitching limits, and most importantly, keep guys healthy.

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