With his team one win away from clinching its seventh American League West title in the past eight seasons, Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez was held out of the lineup for the series opener against the Mariners on Monday because of a sprained right knee.
After Houston’s 6-1 loss , Astros manager Joe Espada said Alvarez would miss the remainder of the series, though he added that he expects Alvarez to be available for this weekend’s series against Cleveland.
Puerto Rican Espada said an X-ray taken Sunday showed some swelling in the area and that Alvarez underwent an MRI on Monday afternoon.
“If there is a chance that he will return in the regular season, that is good news. I wish it had been just one game, but that is not the case,” Espada said.
“We want to make sure we check everything out, so he’s having some additional tests done,” Espada continued. “I spoke to him this morning (Monday) and he woke up pretty sore. I was hoping, praying, that he would feel better, but that wasn’t the case. So we’ll see once we get those results back, when he gets here.”
Espada revealed that the MRI would be performed regardless of the results of the X-ray. “We just want to make sure we go through everything thoroughly and make sure everything is okay,” he added.
Alvarez, who started Sunday’s game in left field and was 2-for-2, was removed from the game with a bruised right knee after a hard slide at second base.
Alvarez slid into second base while double-hitting and was clearly in pain as he stood up. He leaned forward and massaged his knee before limping off the field.
Alvarez underwent arthroscopic surgery on both knees in August 2020 after struggling with knee issues during the first two years of his career. He had a small tear in the patellar tendon in his right knee, which was repaired, and he has had no major issues since. Still, the Astros have tried to limit his time in the outfield as a precaution.
Alvarez is closing out another standout season at the plate, hitting .308 with 35 homers, 34 doubles and a .959 OPS in 147 games.