Astros Veteran Slugger Will Get on Track To Assume Role As Team's MVP Again

A Houston Astros veteran slugger will get on track sooner than later, taking over his role as the team's MVP.

Apr 5, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez (44) bats during the seventh inning against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. / Jordan Johnson-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros' offense has started slow in the 2025 MLB regular season, with several players failing to live up to expectations.

Third baseman Isaac Paredes, left fielder Jose Altuve and center fielder Jake Meyers are the only players with league-average OPS+ numbers. There are a few players who are close, but overall, the offense has struggled.

As a team, the Astros have a .218/.306/.319 slash line with only 11 home runs and 12 doubles through 14 games. They have a sky-high 23.8% strikeout rate, struggling to generate runs consistently.

One of the players who is surprisingly struggling out of the gate is designated hitter Yordan Alvarez.

He had only one hit through his first 16 at-bats, striking out six times. It took him until Game 9 of the season to hit his first home run, which has been his only long ball to date in 2025.

Despite the slow start, Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report still predicts Alvarez to be the team’s MVP over Altuve, who remains one of the best hitters in the game despite his positional change defensively.

“But Alvarez finished third in AL MVP voting in 2022 and also hit what was essentially the World Series-winning homer that season. With a .968 career OPS, Alvarez is the best player on the Astros,” the MLB writer shared.

Since that slow start, the veteran slugger has started finding his groove at the plate.

He has put together multi-hit efforts in three out of the last nine games and has drawn seven walks, getting on base at least twice in six out of nine contests.

The lack of power to this point is a bit concerning, but Alvarez is adjusting to life without two stellar teammates offering protection in the lineup.

Without third baseman Alex Bregman and right fielder Kyle Tucker, Houston knew their offensive production would take a dip.

Replacing players of that caliber who are multi-time, homegrown All-Stars is never an easy thing to do. They spent some money in free agency on first baseman Christian Walker and acquired two Opening Day starters from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Tucker; Paredes and star prospect Cam Smith.

But, it has been a slow start for two out of three of those players, as stepping into the roles vacated by Bregman and Tucker was always going to be a tall task.

With so many of his teammates struggling, teams can be a lot more careful working around Alvarez since they aren’t afraid of anyone else consistently beating them in the lineup.

At least not yet.

With only three extra-base hits through his first 61 plate appearances, things should start to turn around soon. He is still hitting the ball with authority with an average exit velocity of 94.9 mph and hard-hit rate of 48.6%.

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