HOUSTON (SportsRadio 610)- Yordan Alvarez was hit on the foot in the sixth inning of the Astros 9-5 loss to the Orioles on Tuesday night, but that is not the reason he was left out of Wednesday afternoon's lineup.
“I haven’t liked how he moved, haven’t liked how he’s swung,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said.
Alvarez has compiled a .298/.468/.614 slash line in 17 September games, though he's gone hitless in eight at bats the last two nights against the Orioles, but the day off came as a surprise with the Astros lead in the AL West down to a half game.
"I just decided to give him today off and then he'll be good through the season, much like I did with (Kyle) Tucker. Sometimes you have to maybe sacrifice one game for the next nine. From my experience, I've seen it be very beneficial not only physically but mentally, too."
Tucker was mired in a 2-for-19 slump before Baker sat him in Kansas City on Sunday. He returned from that off day to go 3-for-9 with a homer, triple, and double in two games since.