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Yordan Alvarez will be relegated to a non-fielding position for some time now following his persistent elbow issue. The Astros have had to call for replacements in the left field as they keep Alvarez in the lineup.
Yordan Alvarez has been used for most of the season as the Houston Astros' primary DH. However, with rookie catcher Yainer Diaz coming into the lineup as the DH and Martin Maldonado still starting as the backstop, Alvarez shifted to left field.
Problems occurred around ten days back when Alvarez complained of some issues in his throwing elbow. His last start in left field was on the 13th of September, following which he hasn't returned to the outfield. This prompted the Astros to take some precautionary measures as they didn't want their star hitter to be severely injured before the postseason.
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"Couple of days ago, I had a few swings and misses," Alvarez said via a translator. "Felt something in my elbow and they told me I could not play. But now I feel better. Obviously, the elbow is one of those things that is very delicate, so we need to be careful with it, but I feel a lot better now."
Dusty Baker has brought in Chas McCormick to play in left field with Alvarez starting as DH. This has pushed Yainer Diaz out of the lineup. This weakens their offensive prowess a bit during a time when the Astros' offense has been significantly underperforming.
As per reports, Alvarez tried to throw a few balls on Friday night before the game against the Kansas City Royals but didn't yield much as bench coach Joe Espada and trainer Jeremiah Randall felt he needed more time.
Houston Astros displaced from the top of AL West after loss to KC Royals
After weeks of somehow holding on to the lead at the top of the AL West, the defending champions finally were overtaken by the Texas Rangers after their loss against the Kansas City Royals. They lost 5-7 despite making a three-run rally in the ninth.
The Astros have now dropped seven of the last ten games, having lost three consecutive series. They need to start getting a string of wins if they have to secure a postseason spot. Currently in the AL Wild Card spots, they will face significant pressure from division rivals Seattle Mariners, who are 0.5 games behind them.
