Yordan Alvarez injury update: Astros slugger suffers 'pretty significant' ankle sprain, will be out 'a while'
Alvarez hurt himself Monday night while crossing home plate
Houston Astros outfielder Yordan Alvarez will be be "out for a while" after suffering a "pretty significant" left ankle sprain on Monday, manager Joe Espada told media, including The Athletic, on Tuesday. For now, Alvarez will remain on the active roster.
Alvarez exited Monday night's game against the Texas Rangers, an eventual Houston win, after suffering the injury while crossing the plate during the bottom of the first inning. Alvarez, who scored on a throwing error by Rangers pitcher Jack Leiter to give the Astros an early 2-0 edge, saw his left foot slide after touching down on the plate.
Alvarez then needed assistance stopping his momentum outside of the Astros dugout before clearly being hobbled as he made his retreat down the steps and into the Houston clubhouse.
"It did not look good on the field," Astros manager Joe Espada told reporters after the game.
Baseball Prospectus' database shows that players tend to miss 30 days on average with a sprained ankle. Obviously every injury and recovery is different, so it's to be seen if Alvarez adheres to the timeline.
The Astros moved starting right fielder Jesús Sánchez to left field at the beginning of the second inning after Alvarez's departure. They also inserted rookie Zach Cole to backfill the vacancy in right field.
Alvarez, 28, had reached base on a walk. He entered Monday's contest having hit .273/.364/.430 (119 OPS+) with six home runs through 47 games. Alvarez had missed more than three months because of a hand injury. Since returning, he had posted a 1.024 OPS in 18 games.
The Astros and Rangers began a three-game set on Monday that has major playoff implications. The Astros are three games ahead of the Rangers for second place in the American League West as well as for the AL's third and final wild card spot. The Astros also trail the first-place Seattle Mariners by just a half game. The Rangers possess the 6-5 seasonal series advantage, which means that Houston will need to win the final two games of the series in order to win the head-to-head tiebreaker with Texas.
It's worth noting that the Astros and Rangers aren't alone in their hunt for the final wild card spot. The Cleveland Guardians are just three games games behind the Astros going into Tuesday's slate of games.
