Francisco Alvarez, Photo by James Farrance

Over the last few weeks, we have seen Francisco Álvarez get tabbed as the best prospect in the minors. He was the best prospect at the Double-A level, and then, he was the best prospect at the Triple-A level.

Finally, now, according to MLB Pipeline, Álvarez is now considered the top prospect in baseball.

That became official with Riley Greene having graduated from prospect status after playing 33 games with the Detroit Tigers amassing 150 plate appearances. As a result, every player moved up a slot. With Álvarez being ranked behind Greene, he is now the top prospect in the game.

Of course, this was more than just Álvarez just moving up a slot. This is a reflection of his skyrocketing up each and every prospect rankings due to his incredible progress both at and behind the plate. On that front, before the season, MLB Pipeline said, “Álvarez’s trajectory toward becoming an All-Star catcher seems to get more assured by the month.” The rankings have reflected that.

This marks the first time in their history the Mets have had a catching prospect as the top prospect in the game. Really, this is a height most prospects do not reach. For example, we did not see David Wright ranked as a top overall prospect. In fact, Wright would top out at 21 on the Baseball America rankings.

Paul Wilson was another Mets prospect who ranked number two before his Major League debut. On that note, Baseball America has had top 100 prospect rankings since 1990, and they have not rated a Mets prospect number one.

When Amed Rosario was called up to the majors in 2017, he was regarded as the second overall prospect by MLB Pipeline and number eight by Baseball America. It should be noted Keith Law did rate Rosario as the top prospect in the majors.

This is the rarefied air Álvarez is reaching. Since there have been top 100 lists, Mets prospects have rarely been atop the rankings. Now, like Greene before him, Álvarez may soon find himself in the majors.