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Yordan Alvarez makes his return to the field tonight. No, he won't be back in the Houston Astros lineup — though they could use his bat after being shut out in three of their last four games. Instead, Alvarez will begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Chriti on Tuesday night. This will be Alvarez's first action in professional game since early-May.
The Astros' offense has been severely lacking since Alvarez landed on the injured list. Houston was already without any semblance of power from the left side of the dish, and Alvarez's prolonged stint on the IL really hurt the overall balance of Houston's lineup.
According to Astros GM Dana Brown, the hope is that Alvarez will get in a few games with the Hooks and then return to the lineup for the upcoming weekend series against the Orioles. Alvarez will be in the lineup as the DH on Tuesday night, receive an off-day on Wednesday, and then play on Thursday and Friday before joining the big league squad in Baltimore.
Astros finally get good Yordan Alvarez news, but fans must manage expectations
Astros fans may be eager to get Alvarez's bat back in the lineup this weekend, but it's quite likely that the Houston faithful have forgotten how awful he was at the outset of the season. Alvarez was away from the field for over three months, so it's easy to overlook that he was hitting a meager .210 with just three home runs and a paltry 79 OPS+ through his first 100 at-bats of the 2025 season.
Astros fans who are expecting Alvarez to be the savior for this suddenly-inept offense may have another thing coming. While most of his advanced metrics were right in line with his career norms, the counting stats are way off.
Furthermore, expecting a player who's been off for three months to all of sudden become an impact bat in the middle of the lineup is unwise. While Alvarez's track record is outstanding, his struggles this season, coupled with the injury and extended absence, should have the Astros fanbase proceeding with caution.
Though the fans in Houston may be hoping to see vintage Yordan Alvarez in the batters' box this weekend, what they see instead may be more like the spring training version of the three-time All-Star. Unfortunately, that's not what Houston needs at the moment.