ASTROS NEWS

Why it's officially time to cover Astros' Yordan Alvarez in Bubble Wrap until postseason

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Now's the time to be cautious with the Astros slugger. Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images.
After the off-season from hell, what do the Astros look like on the field in 2020?

The Houston Astros received another scare from Yordan Alvarez on Tuesday night when he had to eventually leave the game with left ankle discomfort after rolling his ankle in the first inning.



Fortunately for Houston, the X-Rays came back negative and Yordan should be okay. But this is just the latest scare with Alvarez. Let's put this in perspective, he seems to deal with a lot of injuries. He's already had surgery on both knees, he's dealt with hand discomfort in both hands, depending on who you talk to, which could require surgery in the offseason if he is in fact dealing with a Hamate bone injury. And let's not forget the concussion symptoms earlier in the season he suffered after crashing into Jeremy Pena.

Yordan also abruptly had to leave a game against the Braves on Aug. 19 that required him being hospitalized with shortness of breath. Now, with the playoffs right around the corner, Yordan is dealing with an ankle injury. The magic number for the Astros is at 1 now, meaning they lock up the top seed in the AL with one more win and seven games to play.

With that being the case, Yordan doesn't need to play anymore in the regular season. Yordan proved against the Yankees this summer that he could come back from extended time off (hand discomfort) and not miss a beat. (He went 2-4 with a double, home run, and 3 RBI)

It's all about the postseason for this Astros team, so let's not take any chances with Yordan Alvarez. Rest him until the postseason and give the team their best possible chance to bring home another World Series.

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The Astros beat the Phillies, 2-1. Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images.

Cam Smith hit an RBI single in the eighth inning to give the Houston Astros a 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday.

The rookie's second hit of the game came off Orion Kerkering (5-3) and gave the Astros their fourth straight win.

Brandon Marsh tied the game on a sacrifice fly in the top of the inning to end the Phillies' 26-inning scoreless streak.

The Astros took a 1-0 lead on Yainer Diaz’s RBI single in the second inning. They only managed three more hits off Phillies starter Christopher Sanchez, who struck out 11 with zero walks over six innings. Sanchez has not issued a walk in three straight starts.

Hunter Brown lowered his league best ERA to 1.74 by scattering three singles over seven shutout innings, with nine strikeouts. He did not allow a runner to reach second base.

Bryan Abreu (3-3) struck out Trea Turner to end the eighth, and then struck out Kyle Schwarber, Alec Bohm, and Nick Castellanos in the ninth.

Abreu joined Julia Morales after the game and talked about his impressive performance!

Rafael Marchán had two of the Phillies' four hits. Bryson Stott reached base twice and scored the Phillies' lone run.

Key moment

Smith’s RBI.

Key stat

Brown’s 1.74 ERA is the fourth best in Astros history through 16 starts and the best since Justin Verlander posted a 1.60 ERA through 16 starts in 2018.

Up next

The Astros open a three-game series against the Cubs on Friday with LHP Brandon Walter (0-1 3.80 ERA) on the mound.

The Phillies open a three-game series at the Braves on Friday with RHP Mick Abel (2-1 3.47 ERA) against Atlanta RHP Bryce Elder (2-4 4.77).

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