HOUSTON (SportsRadio 610)- Yordan Alvarez was forced to take a backseat during the 2019 World Series. Even with the Astros trailing the Nationals 2-0, Alvarez was deemed too much of a liability to roam the Nationals Park outfield for games three and four. Two years later, his defense improved enough to allow him to start all three World Series games at Truist Park, and another reason why the Astros were more than comfortable with signing him to a six-year contract extension, worth $115 million.
“I think a lot of people sometimes just think that I'm only a good hitter,” Alvarez said Monday through an interpreter at a press conference announcing his new deal. “But I think as a player I have shown that I can play the field as well.”
Extension talks between the Astros and Alvarez started some time ago, according to general manager James Click, but started to pick up over the last couple of weeks. Alvarez would not been eligible to hit free agency until after the 2025 season, but the $115 million is the second largest guarantee the Astros have given a player, only trailing the $151 million extension Jose Altuve signed before the 2018 season.
“Early in his career, many talked about him as a designated hitter. But through his hard work and dedication, he has turned himself into a quality player in left field,” Click said. “Combined with his hitting, this makes him quite simply one of the best players in the game right now.”
Alvarez was a unanimous American League Rookie of the Year in 2019 and won ALCS MVP honors last October. This season he’s second in the American League with 15 home runs, third in OPS (.972) and slugging (.592), and eighth in RBI (33), but he doesn’t want to just be known as a hitter, and the Astros don’t view him as one.
“He brings his raw athleticism to the outfield,” Click said. "He's a big man. but he is also, I think faster than he gets credit for, and he has ability to chase balls down in the gaps.”
Less than 11 percent (9-of-83) of Alvarez’s regular season starts in 2019 came in the outfield. After undergoing surgery on both knees during the 2020 season, Alvarez made 28.6 percent (39-of-136) of his regular season starts in left field last season, and that number has increased to 42.8 percent (21-of-49) so far in 2022. Click says there’s no reason to think that number can’t climb in the future.
"We're not putting any limits on that. It's a testament to his work ethic, his dedication, and his character that he has worked himself into shape to be able to play out there as much as he has, and if he continues with that, I don't see any reason why he couldn't continue to expand his role in this team."
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