Yordan Alvarez finally gets chance to quell Astros fans' fears with impending spring debut

Yordan Alvarez's extended absences were a prime reason why the Houston Astros took a nosedive in 2025. It's not hard to imagine the club sneaking into the October dance had the slugger been able to manage more than 48 games last year.

Alvarez was the poster child for the team's injury issues last season, in more ways than one. The three-time All-Star went on the IL on May 5 and was originally diagnosed with a hand strain. That strain was later discovered to be a fracture once he resumed taking batting practice and still felt pain. The misstep was just one of several instances where the training staff failed and cost players more time than necessary on the IL.

The nail in Houston's coffin proved to be when Alvarez went down again in mid September with a sprained ankle. The Astros' playoff hopes were already on life support, and without their best player for the final two weeks of the season, a realization of their collapse was inevitable.

The Astros have taken it easy with their offensive engine this spring, but with him set to make his spring training debut next week, he has the opportunity to quell a lot of fears. In more ways than one.

Yordan Alvarez putting together a strong showing will calm many in Astros world once he makes his spring training debut

Here's the dirty little secret about Alvarez's 2025 campaign: his production was way down even before the injury occurred. Over the season's first month, he hit just .219/.316/.354. His hand injury occurred at the end of April, so for most of that time, he was healthy.

The flip side to this is that once he returned to action, he looked like his old self. He finished the season on a tear, slashing .369/.462/.569 over his final 78 plate appearances.

Neither sample is large enough to draw any meaningful conclusions. The poor showing prior to his injury should hold almost as much weight as the hot streak he went on once he was finally healthy. The differentiating factor, which shouldn't be ignored, is his past track record.

Alvarez has consistently been one of the top five hitters in the game. At 28 years old, he's smack dab in the heart of his prime. That can't be ignored.

Still, there are going to be questions about his health. He doesn't seem worried, as he's advocated for himself to be the primary left fielder, although the team has other plans, preferring to write his name in ink next to the DH spot. There is little playoff hope with Alvarez performing up to his past peak and staying healthy, so keeping him out of harm's way will be the priority.

Seeing Alvarez dominate will still feel a lot better than knowing that he should still be able to put up astronomical numbers because it will silence that tiny voice of doubt in the back of fans' minds. The good news is, we won't have to wait long for him to have the opportunity to make us all feel 100% at ease.