Star slugger Yordan Alvarez hasn’t taken the field for the Houston Astros since May 2 after a hand injury left him sidelined. After a nearly four-month wait which included a couple of setbacks, the power-hitting lefty is finally back in the lineup on Tuesday night against the Colorado Rockies.
The return of the Astros’ star marks a massive boost for a lineup which has sorely missed him. The team still sits atop the AL West standings but holds just a 1.5-game lead over the Seattle Mariners. After their offense struggled through some serious cold stretches recently, Alvarez provides a major infusion of pop to a batting order which needs all the help it can get.
While the 28-year-old didn’t quite look like himself in 29 appearances to start the 2025 MLB season, there’s some context to the numbers. He slashed only .210/.306/.340 in 100 at-bats, tallying 21 hits, 18 RBIs and just three home runs. However, Alvarez was playing through that lingering hand issue which ended up sidelining him and has now gotten plenty of opportunity to rest up.
He looked revitalized in his four rehab games at the Double-A level as well, batting .467 with a 1.262 OPS in 15 at-bats with seven hits, four runs and four RBI while drawing a pair of walks. If Alvarez is truly healthy again, the Astros should feel much more confident about their ability to defend the division lead.
