Houston Astros Slugger Cracks Top 10 in MLB Network Rankings
With Spring Training underway and Opening Day getting closer, MLB Network wrapped up its rankings for the Top-100 MLB players right now on Wednesday.
Not surprisingly, a Houston Astros player featured prominently in the top 10. It was slugging designated hitter/outfielder Yordan Alvarez, who rated eighth overall -- the highest ranking for an Astros player on this year's list.
That feels about right for Alvarez, who is one of the best hitters in baseball and an absolute monster at the plate when healthy.
In just 114 games last year, the big lefty socked 31 home runs with 97 RBIs and a .293/.407/.583 batting line -- his third straight season with at least 30 homers and 90 ribbies.
Alvarez also gets extra credit for his work in the postseason, which was stellar as usual last year.
He batted a scalding .465/.510/.977 with six home runs and 15 RBIs in 11 playoff games, nearly leading Houston to a third straight American League pennant.
At 26, Alvarez is squarely in his prime and poised to inflict even more damage in 2024. He's a menace in the heart of the Astros' batting order and wields the biggest bat on the team, making him their version of David Ortiz.
The only things holding Alvarez back from an even higher spot on the list are his limited defense and baserunning.
He's primarily a DH and only played 40 games defensively last year, all in left field. And despite the league-wide explosion in base-stealing, he didn't attempt a single steal.
Alvarez is a bit one-dimensional as a player, which is why he rates behind more rounded stars such as Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Ronald Acuna Jr.
When it comes to strictly hitting, however, Alvarez is arguably better than all of them.
