NEW YORK -- The enticement of the home run remains enough of a threat for Astros manager AJ Hinch to stick with struggling rookie Yordan Alvarez at designated hitter in the postseason. Alvarez entered Game 5 on Friday hitting 7-for-34 in the playoffs, including 1-for-15 in the ALCS with seven strikeouts, two walks and no RBIs. Those numbers are a far cry from his bang-up regular season that will likely get Alvarez the AL Rookie of the Year Award.

“He's had an incredible year, and I think his ability to come up to a really good team and jump right into the middle of the order for the majority of the season, contribute the way that he did, the power, the run production, being in the middle of this lineup from the get-go as a rookie is exceptional,” Hinch said.

Alvarez batted fifth in the first two games of the ALCS before being dropped to sixth in Game 3 and seventh for Games 4 and 5.

While Alvarez has shown a couple of public displays of frustration during his slump -- which started near the end of the season and carried into the playoffs -- Hinch has been encouraged by how the rookie has reacted to failure. That’s partly because of being on a veteran club that includes fellow Cuban Yuli Gurriel, who has served as a mentor.

“This was probably the perfect team for him,” Hinch said. “We have a great culture. We have some countrymen for him to relate to. We have all the information imaginable to put him in a position to be successful. But I think it's about his preparation and his ability to absorb all of that on the biggest stage in the highest league in the world. If he gets the [the Rookie of the Year], as he should, then he deserves it.”

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Hinch praises Sabathia
When CC Sabathia walked off the mound after injuring his shoulder in Game 4 of the ALCS on Thursday, it likely marked the end of his storied career. Tributes have poured in from around the Majors for the veteran lefty, including in Houston's dugout. Hinch caught Sabathia in one game in Spring Training when they were teammates with the Indians, and he also homered off him in a big league game.

“He was very polished as a young player, emotionally and in the clubhouse, and very engaging personally,” Hinch said. “But the stuff was real. I had faced him as a hitter before I caught him. And it was amazing to have somebody that big, that physical, that athletic back in the day be able to do so much on the mound. And a lot was done to him as a young player -- 19, 20 years old when he first got into the big leagues.”

Hinch spent 2003 Spring Training with the Indians before being traded to the Royals at the end of spring. His time around Sabathia was limited, but he left a mark on a young catcher.

“He was fun to catch -- big target,” Hinch said. “He's a big man out there. And the stuff was so elite across the board that you had a lot of weapons to go to. And it's been fun. I love when these guys stay in the game this long and adapt and evolve and change to stay in the game and still be effective. And I saw his press conference earlier ... if he wanted to stay as a left-handed reliever, teams would line up to let him keep pitching.”

Chirinos takes a drubbing
Astros catcher Robinson Chirinos was behind the plate for 966 innings in the regular season, which was by far a season high for him. The veteran backstop, who spent the previous six seasons with the Rangers, has taken a beating behind the plate this year.

Houston has been keeping a close eye on Chirinos after he missed the entire 2012 season following a serious concussion, and he’s taken some blows to the head this year, too. In Game 4 of the ALCS on Thursday, Chirinos was struck on the left shoulder twice -- once an Edwin Encarnacion backswing and later on a hit-by-pitch.

“It's a thankless job back there when you get beat up,” Hinch said. “I said to him on the field, he's been taking these body blows all year, he might as well take them for another couple of weeks. That's the key is to come back tomorrow night.”

Chirinos has caught all 240 1/3 innings thrown by Justin Verlander in the regular season and playoffs this year, so there was no way he wasn’t going to be in the lineup for Game 5.

“Our whole dugout was concerned, but the guy who wanted to make sure he was ready the most is Justin Verlander,” Hinch said. “He's caught every pitch this season that JV has thrown, so he'll be in there and be ready.”