CLEVELAND — After Wednesday’s victory over Cleveland, a sparkling championship belt in boxing style hung over Yordan Alvarez’s locker room chair. Once again, he stood as Houston’s premier performer without question.
Currently, no player across baseball is performing at a higher level.
“To be honest with you,” Astros shortstop Carlos Correa stated, “2026 Yordan is the closest thing I’ve seen to Barry Bonds.”
That’s quite a statement.
Alvarez connected on his MLB-best 11th home run of the season, a two-run blast in the opening frame, helping the injury-plagued Astros secure a 2-0 victory over the Guardians and claim two games in the three-game series against last year’s AL Central titleholders.
Though Houston has struggled early this season, Alvarez has maintained exceptional form.
The powerful 6-foot-4 designated hitter tops all major leaguers in home runs, RBIs (26), hits (33), extra-base hits (19), total bases (74), on-base percentage (.466), slugging percentage (.779) and OPS (1.245).
Such dominance explains why Correa draws comparisons to the legendary Bonds.
“Aaron Judge has a 1.200 OPS, but Yordan has done it a different way,” Correa explained. “He’s not swinging and missing much. He’s not striking out a lot. He’s walking a lot, that’s what Barry did.
“Yordan is getting the intentional-walk treatment every time first base is open. I don’t see any other player in the league they do that for.”
In the series conclusion, Alvarez recorded three hits in four plate appearances, pushing his hitting streak to nine consecutive games and his on-base streak to 18 games. He has launched home runs in four of his last six contests, becoming one of the few reliable constants for manager Joe Espada.
“He stays within himself and he knows how important it is for him to do damage,” Espada commented. “He’s a presence and he’s carrying us right now.”
Following Correa’s leadoff double in the first inning against Tanner Bibee, Alvarez drove a curveball from the right-handed pitcher 422 feet beyond the right field fence, providing Houston with a 2-0 advantage that lasted the entire game.
Bibee failed to hit catcher Bo Naylor’s intended location, and Alvarez capitalized on the mistake.
“It was the right pitch in that spot if I threw it where Bo wanted me to throw it,” Bibee acknowledged. “It was supposed to be in the dirt, threw it up and that guy, as good as he is and how hot he is right now, it’s going to happen. Just can’t make the mistake.”
Alvarez recorded singles to right field in his following two plate appearances before being retired on a sharp ground ball to first base in the eighth inning that he believed was foul territory. Alvarez remained in the batter’s box, appearing shocked that he had been retired.
Such has been his season-long dominance.
“At some point you’re expecting him to get out because the game is supposed to be so hard,” Correa observed. “When he’s going that good, you’re like, OK he’s due to get out here. And he just keeps raking. It’s incredible. It’s so much fun.
“I haven’t missed one swing of his all year because he’s must-watch TV.”
Alvarez remains modest about his scorching start to the campaign. Following a 2023 season limited to just 48 games due to injuries, he’s not taking his current success for granted while also recognizing his exceptional performance.
“I just want to find a good pitch and connect on the pitch and things are turning out for me right now,” Alvarez said, who became just the second Astros player alongside Lance Berkman (2002) to hit 11 home runs in the season’s first 26 games. “I’m not surprised with my results. That’s why I work so hard. Every at-bat that I have, I go aggressive.”
