Astros Lose Alvarez to Injury, Rookie Cole Delivers in Win

Summary:

• Yordan Alvarez left Monday’s 6-3 win over the Rangers with a left ankle sprain and will undergo an MRI on Tuesday.
• Rookie Zach Cole stepped in, hitting a go-ahead homer and an RBI single in just his fourth big-league game.
• The victory pulled Houston within a half-game of Seattle in the AL West and widened their Wild Card cushion.

The Houston Astros’ 6-3 victory against the Texas Rangers on Monday night came with mixed feelings for many. While some felt a sense of relief watching rookie Zach Cole deliver a breakout performance, others were concerned about baseball star slugger Yordan Alvarez going down with yet another worrisome injury.

Alvarez Left the Stadium on Crutches

The 28-year-old Cuban sprained his left ankle while scoring a first-inning run and wasn’t able to return. After drawing a walk, he rounded the bases when Rangers pitcher Jack Leiter overthrew first on Carlos Correa’s infield dribbler.

Yordan Alvarez was seen crossing the plate standing, but while he was coming down on home plate, his ankle twisted in an awkward position. At that time, he stumbled and had to limp his way toward the dugout, where he was briefly assessed by manager Joe Espada and a trainer before being ruled out for the night.

“It did not look good on the field”, Espada said. Alvarez left Daikin Park on crutches with his foot in a walking boot and refused to answer questions from the media. A spokesman for the team said the player will undergo an MRI on Tuesday, followed by an official comment.

Jeremy Peña, who scored before Alvarez on the same play, clearly saw the incident.

His ankle kind of twisted, and when he had to plant again, I saw it twist again. And it’s not pretty. You don’t want to see that, especially Yordan Alvarez. We need him.

The new setback is particularly concerning given Alvarez’s history of injuries, which includes close to four months with a fractured right hand originally misdiagnosed as a muscle strain. Since he made his comeback on August 26, he had been Houston’s best hitter, batting .369 with a 1.024 OPS in 18 games.

Espada on Cole: “The Stage Is Not Fazing Him.”

Substitute Cole, however, made the most of the chance he was given, crushing a two-out fastball to right for a two-run homer in the fifth inning. This places Houston in front, 4-3. Later on, he added an RBI single for insurance.

That was a fastball well-executed. Leiter put that pitch where he wanted to, and this kid just put an ‘A’ swing on it. He continues to do things that show he’s well prepared. The stage is not fazing him.

The win was critical in the playoff race. Houston trimmed Seattle’s AL West lead to half a game and opened a three-game cushion over Texas and Cleveland in the Wild Card standings.