{"id":679284,"date":"2026-04-19T18:10:52","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T18:10:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/679284\/"},"modified":"2026-04-19T18:10:52","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T18:10:52","slug":"yordan-alvarezs-magnificent-start-giving-astros-al-mvp-vibes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/679284\/","title":{"rendered":"Yordan Alvarez\u2019s Magnificent Start Giving Astros AL MVP Vibes"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s not fair to ask Houston Astros<\/a> slugger Yordan Alvarez<\/a> to carry the team. But, right now, that\u2019s what he\u2019s doing. <\/p>\n

On Saturday night he hit his ninth home run of the season, pushing him into the lead in that category ahead of the New York Yankees\u2019 Aaron Judge. Alvarez<\/a> has never won an American League MVP Award. Judge has won three. Perhaps this is the year the Astros<\/a> slugger finally lands one. <\/p>\n

His incredible start is just the beginning of the early case he\u2019s making for the award. <\/p>\n

Yordan Alvarez\u2019s Scorching Start<\/p>\n

Doing what he does best.#ChaseTheFight<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/NgoZnPaFD5<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Houston Astros (@astros) April 18, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

It isn\u2019t just that Alvarez leads qualifying hitters with nine home runs. His slash is incredible entering Sunday\u2019s game \u2014 .342\/.485\/.789 with a 1.274 OPS. Among qualifying batters only two have a better batting average \u2014 the Los Angeles Dodgers\u2019 Andy Pages (.389) and the Tampa Bay Rays\u2019 Yandy Diaz (.354). Alvarez\u2019s on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS is tops among qualified hitters in the Majors. <\/p>\n

Only Pages (21) has more RBI than Alvarez (20). <\/p>\n

Right now, he\u2019s the most productive hitter in the game. He\u2019s miles ahead of Judge. While he\u2019s slammed eight home runs and is right behind Alvarez, he is only slashing .234\/.337\/.584. Judge is likely to pick up that average. Alvarez is likely to come back to earth. But his start, relative to the rest of the Majors, has few equals. <\/p>\n

In a season when offense is down across baseball, Alvarez has three fewer home runs than the worst team in baseball in the category, the Boston Red Sox. They have 12 home runs. The San Francisco Giants are next at 13.<\/p>\n

This is redemption for Alvarez, who endured his worst season in 2025 as he missed months with a hand injury that was eventually diagnosed as a hairline fracture. He played in just 48 games. Yet, his bat was productive. He slashed .273\/.367\/.430 with six home runs and 27 RBI. <\/p>\n

Yes, he\u2019s already hit more home runs than a year ago and he\u2019s on track to have more RBI than a year ago by the end of April. <\/p>\n

This season is shaping up like his 2022 season, which helped the Astros win the World Series and was probably the offensive season of his career. He was an All-Star, an AL Silver Slugger and finished third in AL MVP voting after he slashed .306\/.406\/.613 with 37 home runs and 97 RBI. The AL MVP in 2022 was Judge, who broke the AL record for most home runs in a season with 62. <\/p>\n

Judge has won three of the last four awards. This may be the year Alvarez finally catches him.<\/p>\n

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