DENVER — Francisco Alvarez registered the first of what the Mets hope will be many viral moments last month, styling and flipping en route to first base as he walloped a go-ahead homer for Single-A Brooklyn.
“That doesn’t surprise me that people are excited about it, because I’m a good player and I can continue to improve,” the 19-year-old said through an interpreter Sunday, before he participated in his first All-Star Futures Game at Coors Field.
However, the catcher wasn’t altogether pleased with the clip.
“Watching it back, I did feel like I kind of disrespected the game a little bit,” Alvarez said. “So I do feel like I need to respect the game a little bit more in a situation like that.”
He displayed more respect in this big showcase, hammering a sixth-inning, pinch-hit homer to left field to help the National League post an 8-3 win over the American League.
“He’s a big boy,” Cubs prospect Brennen Davis, the game’s most valuable player, said of the 5-foot-10, 233-pound Alvarez. “What he can do with a bat is impressive. He has a very bright future.”
Alvarez has hit .243/.356/.505 in 35 games for Brooklyn, with seven homers in 111 at-bats, after beginning the campaign with a .417/.567/.646 run in 15 games for Single-A St. Lucie.
“I feel like I’m going to have a better second half,” Alvarez said. “I feel good with the season I’m having right now, but once the second half rolls around, that’s when I feel I’m going to get it going.”
Asked what he can improve, Alvarez pointed to his defense, particularly the accuracy of his throws, and “tweaks I wanted to make to my swing, to my approach, to better these numbers.”