Yordan Alvarez sends strong message to Astros ahead of trade deadline

The Houston Astros bounced back from a three-game sweep at the hands of the Baltimore Orioles to pick up an 8-5 victory over the Miami Marlins on Monday night. As is usually the case, superstar designated hitter Yordan Alvarez led the way, as he smacked a pair of home runs, putting him in a tie with Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies for the most big flies of any player in the league with 33.

Despite having a 48-54 record, the Astros are somehow still in the hunt for a playoff spot in the wide-open American League, which makes the next few weeks ahead of the trade deadline very important. Alvarez knows there’s a lot of chatter surrounding Houston currently, which led him to issue a strong message on the team’s impending trade deadline dealings after the team’s win over the Marlins.

Yordan Alvarez Dishes on Astros’ Trade Deadline Plans

Not much has gone right for the Astros this season, but if there’s been one silver lining, it’s been the production from Alvarez at the plate. Through 100 games, Alvarez is in the process of putting together a career year, as he is currently on pace to win the Triple Crown in the American League, with his batting average (.324), home run (33), and RBI (75) tallies all being the highest figures among qualified AL hitters.

The problem is that Alvarez has gotten virtually no help from the rest of the lineup. Isaac Paredes, Jeremy Pena, and Christian Walker have been decent, but Carlos Correa is out for the year, and Jose Altuve is laboring through the worst season of his storied career. Put it all together, and you have a team that is struggling to keep its dwindling playoff hopes alive.

The American League as a whole is up for grabs, though, which is why it could make sense for the Astros to try and add around Alvarez at the trade deadline. With that in mind, the next couple of weeks are very important for Houston, but Alvarez doesn’t see it that way, as he claimed his mindset is not any different than it would be for any stretch of action throughout the season.

“That’s not really our job,” Alvarez said through an interpreter when speaking to reporters on Monday night. “Our job is to go out there and play the game that we know how to play. We give every single game the importance it deserves. Every single game matters. All the games that have gone before this point, they all matter. Every game is important, and it’s important we go out there and do our job.”

Yordan Alvarez Aiming to Lead Astros to Surprising Turnaround

The Astros missed the playoffs for the first time since 2017 last year, and they are at risk of failing to qualify for the postseason again this year. And yet, Houston is only 3.5 games back in the American League West, so again, everything is still up for grabs for this team. The front office simply has to decide what path it wants to take at the trade deadline.

Alvarez is doing everything he can to keep the Astros alive, but at some point, he’s going to need some support. If Houston continues to hover around the same spot it is currently at ahead of the deadline, chances are the front office will look to bring some new faces to town. In the meantime, the team will try to heed Alvarez’s advice and pick up another big win over Miami on Tuesday night.

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