The regular season is approaching the finish line, and the Houston Astros only have a handful of games left to determine if they’ll make the postseason and grab a wild card spot, or win the American League West division for the eighth straight full season.
After sweeping the Texas Rangers, the Astros hold a half-game lead over the Seattle Mariners. But the recent ankle sprain to Yordan Alvarez, one of the most important hitters in Houston’s lineup, makes things tougher. Alvarez is more than likely out for the rest of the season, as manager Joe Espada said it is a significant sprain and will be out for “a while”.
Houston will definitely miss his offensive production, as he was scorching hot lately from the plate. In the 19 games since he returned from a broken bone in his hand, Alvarez was hitting for a .364 average with a 1.031 OPS. Alvarez also hit three home runs and nine RBIs during that period. He even recorded back-to-back four-hit games vs the Yankees in early September.
Jesús Sánchez’s Defense Delivers for the Astros
The Astros need someone to step up, and that player is Jesús Sánchez. The 27-year-old outfielder is now starting to play left field for the team and is tremendous defensively with an elite arm. This was on full display during their series a while back in August against the Baltimore Orioles, where he robbed two home runs. Most recently, Sánchez came through with one of the most important defensive plays of the season against the Rangers on Monday night.
When Alvarez went down, Sánchez was placed in left field and was called into action during the seventh inning. The Astros, leading 4-3 with two outs, faced a challenge when the Rangers threatened with runners on first and second. Wyatt Langford hit a single to left, and Sánchez delivered a perfect throw to the plate that cut down the tying run. The play preserved the lead, and Houston went on to win 6-3.
Jesús Sánchez preserves the Astros lead with a PERFECT THROW ? pic.twitter.com/AUAJBrKKOS
— MLB (@MLB) September 16, 2025
A Power Hitter Who Needs to Show Up
While he has proven his reliability in the outfield, Sánchez is also someone who can be a power hitter like Alvarez. While you cannot compare the two at the plate, Sánchez can still bring some of that strength and has the potential for that home run hitting when he is at his best.
His first home run at Daikin Park in an Astros uniform was a monster 439-foot rocket, which left the bat at 112 mph.
The 6’4” Dominican has had an up-and-down season with Houston so far. Currently, Sánchez only has a .207 average and .644 OPS in 38 games with the Astros. He has hit just three home runs with 10 RBI in that span.
Inconsistent with the Bat
Right after the trade deadline, Sánchez started out of the gate well, with hits in seven of his first eight games in an Astros uniform. He then went into a seemingly endless 0-for-29 slump with a 10-game hitless streak.
Fans started to get frustrated, but then Sánchez exploded for a perfect five-hit game in five at-bats on Aug. 21 at Baltimore. This performance set an MLB record for the largest turnaround from a hitless streak. Two days later, he hit his first home run in an Astros uniform, which was another huge blast, 429 feet at 111 mph.
Sánchez was on fire for another 10-game stretch from the 21st to Sept. 4, where he strung together hits in eight of those games. Following that, he once again was quiet with an eight-game hitless streak. Sánchez finally woke up during this past Rangers series, and the Astros need him to keep it that way till October.
This is the key. We’ve seen the potential. The Astros really need Jesús Sánchez at his best offensively to where he can consistently get hits and also hit a couple out of the ballpark. With the bullpen still shaky and Astros starters inconsistent, the Houston offense needs all the help it can get.
Main Photo Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
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