Yordan Alvarez Will Be the 2026 AL MVP, But Astros Need To Help His Case - Anubis Sports

When Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez steps into the batter’s box, pitchers need to be extremely careful. Alvarez is the best hitter in the American League. It’s no surprise that Alvarez is mentioned when talking about who’d win AL MVP this season, especially now with New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge on the Injured List. Alvarez has a strong case, but the Astros need to help him maximize his odds.

For a designated hitter, the path to MVP is narrower because the DH brings no defensive value compared to the other positions. The last DH to win an American League MVP was Shohei Ohtani in 2023, when he was with the Los Angeles Angels.

He’s a two-way player who hits and pitches, though, so his pitching gave him the extra boost for his MVP case. For Alvarez, who doesn’t play a defensive position, his offensive output needs to be undeniable if he wants to be the AL MVP. Alvarez is doing exactly that by carrying the Astros’ offense.

Yordan Alvarez Is Building an MVP-caliber Season

Alvarez currently sits at the top or very close to it in the American League for several offensive categories, including home runs, OPS, wRC+, and total bases. Alvarez also ranks second in on-base percentage at .430, trailing Oakland Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz’s .435 OBP. These categories are valuable MVP indicators and precisely show how dominant Alvarez has been at the plate.

Without him in the lineup, the Astros’ offense would fall apart, but that’s the problem. Houston is excessively relying on Alvarez to generate the team’s offense alone. He currently ranks first on the team in RBIs with 48, home runs with 22, runs with 45, and hits with 74. First baseman Christian Walker is in second place for RBIs with 46 and third baseman Isaac Paredes is in third place with 32.

Christian Walker has helped the Astros offence with some power production

Christian also ranks second in runs with 38, followed by second baseman Jose Altuve at 27. Those differences are significant and show how much consistent offensive power Alvarez brings compared to the rest of the lineup. This solidifies his MVP case, but there’s only so much an individual can do for his team.

Astros’ Struggles Could Cost Alvarez the MVP

The Astros currently sit in 4th place in the AL West standings with a record of 30-36, and that hurts Alvarez’s MVP chances. Being the best player on a struggling team isn’t the same as being the best player on a guaranteed postseason team. If the season ended today, the Astros wouldn’t even qualify for a Wild Card spot and so it’d be extremely difficult to validate giving the award for MVP in the entire league to a player on a team with a record below .500.

History has also shown that MVPs do not come from losing teams as the last player from a sub .500 team was in 2003 was shortstop Alex Rodriguez of the Texas Rangers. In that season, he had a .298 batting average with 47 home runs and 118 RBIs, even though the Rangers finished with a record of 71-91. While the Astros’ record is currently better than the 2003 Rangers’ as Houston’s winning percentage is bigger, the Astros need to win more games soon or else Alvarez’s MVP chances will plummet.

Yordan Alvarez is doing everything he possibly can to position himself as the most worthy player to win the American League MVP by making his offensive stats fly off the charts. Now it’s up to the Astros to become a winning team, so the voters have more of a reason to give the accolade to Alvarez.