Houston's Yordan Alvarez Trending Toward a Return

The All-Star Break has arrived, which means we've reached the halfway point of the 2023 MLB season. This a good time to check in on some injured stars, including Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez.

Injury Update

Yordan Alvarez (oblique) is expected to start a rehab assignment shortly after the All-Star break and could return to the majors before the end of July.

Alvarez has been out since suffering a right oblique injury on June 8th. He was put on the 10-day IL the following day.

The 2021 ALCS MVP has progressed quickly through his recovery. He began hitting off a tee at the end of June before advancing to batting cage work at the beginning of July. A round of on-field batting practice in Houston's final series before the All-Star Break was the clearest indication of his imminent return.

On Monday, Alvarez told reporters his plan is to "play a couple of games (in the minors)" before returning up to the major league club. If his prognosis is correct, Houston could have their Silver Slugger back by as soon as next week.

Alvarez's Rest-of-Season Outlook

Assuming he's fully healed upon returning, Alvarez should step right back into the heart of the Astros' lineup and give them a huge offensive boost.

Prior to getting hurt, Alvarez was having another stellar season at the plate. Through 57 games, he hit .277, led the league with 55 RBI, and was tied for fourth with 17 home runs.

Despite his strong start, the Astros' offense hadn't quite taken off prior to Alvarez's injury. They ranked just 15th in runs and 21st in both weighted on-base average (wOBA) and on-base plus slugging (OPS). On June 8th, Houston sat at 36-27 and 5.0 games back of first in the AL West.

Since Alvarez hit IL on June 9th, Houston has plateaued with a 14-14 record. However, they've actually made up ground in the division over that span. They now sit at 50-41 and just 2.0 games behind the first-place Texas Rangers.

Astros' Betting Odds

Houston has treaded water in Alvarez's absence, and they're neck and neck with the Rangers, according to the AL West odds on FanDuel Sportsbook.

The defending champs still have a strong chance to make some noise this postseason. They're tied for the fourth-best odds to win the World Series at +1000.

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