Alvarez's health the key to slugger succeeding in '26

HOUSTON -- Perhaps the most devastating injury the Astros endured in a 2025 season chock full of impactful ones was that of slugger Yordan Alvarez, who missed 100 games because of a hand injury and then suffered a freak ankle injury in the final month of the regular season.

The Astros fell one win shy of reaching the playoffs, and Alvarez’s absence down the stretch undoubtedly played a part, especially considering how well he was swinging the bat upon his return from his hand injury in August. Alvarez remains one of the most feared sluggers in the game, and the Astros need him to have a bounce-back season in 2026, which begins with him staying healthy.

In 48 games, Alvarez slashed .273/.367/.430 with six home runs and 27 RBIs in 199 plate appearances. Simply put, his presence in the lineup had the potential to be game-changing with one swing.

“A big part of our success, of course, is going to be being healthy,” Astros general manager Dana Brown said. “We had a lot of guys hurt last year. The IL wasn't our friend, and ultimately we came up a game short, and so we need to be sure that all our guys remain healthy. We just felt like that was an aberration.”

Alvarez missed 100 games while recovering from a broken bone in his hand, but he slashed .369/.462/.569 with three homers and nine RBIs in 19 games after returning to the lineup Aug. 26. He had back-to-back four-hit games against the Yankees in September and had been crushing the baseball. Then came disaster for Houston.

While stepping on home plate and scoring a run Sept. 15 against the Rangers, Alvarez suffered a significant sprain of his left ankle. There were some hopes he could come back at the end of the regular season, but the injury proved to be too serious.

“I feel like the ankle was a freak accident,” Brown said. “He tried to work through that. … He feels great right now. That’s the beauty of the offseason -- is these guys are allowed to rest and their bodies to heal. Ultimately, you feel good about him next year. Last year was the one of the worst seasons he had in terms of the game played, so we don't project it to happen again.”

Astros manager Joe Espada said during the Winter Meetings in December that most of Alvarez’s at-bats would come at designated hitter in ‘26. Alvarez didn’t get hurt playing in left field, but keeping him off the field defensively limits the chances for injury and should keep him fresher. Last year, he started 32 games at DH and 15 in left field.

“I think that's going to be one of our goals, is how do we keep Yordan Alvarez healthy?” Espada said. “Obviously the DH, it's something that I'm going to focus on and really try to get him to spend most of his season there. We do have some depth in our organization, in our team. We can move some guys around. But keeping Yordan healthy, I think [designated hitter] will be a good spot for him.”

The Astros moved Jose Altuve to left field to begin the season, but he wound up playing more games at his natural position of second base. How the Astros split time between Altuve and Alvarez in left remains to be seen.

“Health, for me, is my main focus,” Espada said. "I think going to go into Spring Training, you guys will see a different setup. And we're going to do some things differently where we help our guys be more efficient, be more specific. Get there, get your work in and try to get them off their feet so they can rest and recover because health is going to be my main focus once we get down to West Palm [Beach].”

Alvarez hurt his hand swinging the bat in a game in late April, but he kept playing through the pain because he’s dealt with similar injuries in the past. He was scratched from the Astros’ lineup prior to the May 3 game against the White Sox in Chicago and went on the 10-day IL on May 5.

Alvarez was originally diagnosed with a muscle strain in his right hand following an MRI on May 6. He was close to returning to the lineup before the club revealed on May 31 that Alvarez had a “very small fracture” in his right hand and that the swelling and inflammation in the hand prevented the team from seeing the broken bone.