Astros Slugger Yordan Alvarez Will Be Key for Franchise in Second Half

The Houston Astros are at the All-Star break with the best record in the American League West and exceeding expectations.

After an offseason in which they lost two of their best players, the Astros have once again been able to find a way to be one of the best teams in the AL. For the last decade, Houston has arguably been the team to beat in the league.

However, a loss to the Detroit Tigers in the playoffs last year appeared like their title window might have been closing. Despite retooling this winter, the team has been able to perform extremely well.

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Houston has been led by their dynamic duo in the starting rotation with both Hunter Brown and Framber Valdez having great campaigns. Furthermore, they have one of the best bullpens in baseball.

Even though these two aspects of the team have been great, the lineup has been inconsistent at best throughout the season. Some of their star players and veterans, whom they were relying on to be great, have underperformed, but it hasn’t affected their win total.

However, as the team approaches the second half, they will need some players to be better.

Brian McTaggart of MLB.com recently wrote about the key player for the Astros in the second half of the season being their star slugger Yordan Alvarez.

“The Astros desperately need their slugger back for the stretch drive and especially the playoffs.”

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When the Astros lost their stars over the winter, they likely thought that Alvarez was going to be continuing to perform like an All-Star and be the new face of the offense.

The star slugger has been fantastic throughout his career, until the start of this campaign. Throughout his career, Alvarez has never had an OPS below .850 before this season. Before being hurt, the former AL Rookie of the Year was off to the worst start of his career.

In 29 games, he has slashed .210/.306/.340 with three home runs and 18 RBI. While those numbers are nowhere near where he usually is, the hope was certainly that he would come back and perform well.

However, after recently dealing with some inflammation, there still isn’t a timeline for his return.

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With the Astros hoping to be a title contender, Alvarez coming back and performing like he has throughout his career is going to be key. It has been shocking that the team has done as well as they have with him being out for so long, but that shows their potential if they get him back.

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