Astros Slugger Player With ‘Most To Prove’ Down the Stretch After Injury

Which player on the Houston Astros has the most to prove down the stretch?

Apr 27, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Houston Astros hat and glove in the dugout during the second inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. | William Purnell-Imagn Images

Despite not playing their best baseball of late, the Houston Astros have started to once again build their lead in the American League West, and the return of a star has been helpful. 

Even though there was some uncertainty about how good the Astros could be this season after a wild winter, the team has proven that their window to win is still very much open and their decisions made over the offseason were the right ones. 

After seeing the team lose both Kyle Tucker and Alex Bregman in the same offseason, it would have been easy to see Houston take a step back. Unfortunately, injuries have also been a main storyline for the team this year, with multiple key players missing a lot of time. 

Even with September here, there is a sizable list of players currently out. Fortunately, the team did finally get one of their key offensive players back from the IL, and he has made a positive impact for the team so far.

Brian McTaggart of MLB recently wrote about Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez being the player with the most to prove for the team down the stretch. 

Can Alvarez Carry the Lineup?

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After missing multiple months with a hand injury, Alvarez has come back and been fantastic for the Astros so far. In 23 at-bats since coming back, the star slugger has slashed .435/.563/.609. 

When healthy, he has proven that he can be a similar caliber hitter to Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani. With Houston deciding to move on from Tucker and Bregman, they likely thought that Alvarez could be capable of carrying the lineup. 

Even though the injury and some ineffectiveness might have created some concern for the team, he has been really strong since coming back. As expected, the team has been over .500 as well in games that he has played in. 

As the Astros head toward the final stretch and hopefully games in October, getting their All-Star slugger in a groove will be key. In his absence, the team has seen players like Jeremy Pena emerge and help lead the lineup with him out. 

With the lead in the division starting to get comfortable, Houston could be a team that nobody would want to face in a short series. The Astros have a great duo in Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown, and with a healthy Alvarez, there are a lot of reasons to like their potential.