Alvarez ‘very close’ to returning for needed bat boost
Yordan Alvarez is “very close” to returning to the Astros, manager Dusty Baker said Wednesday, intimating the reigning American League Rookie of the Year could be back “in a couple days.”
Alvarez is working out at the Astros’ alternate training site in Corpus Christi. He was cleared to resume baseball activities July 23 and remains on the injured list for undisclosed reasons. Baker and general manager James Click said Alvarez had “a condition that prevented him from reporting to the field.”
Alvarez’s return could give the Astros’ lineup the jolt it so desperately needs. The offense remains reeling in the wake of George Springer’s wrist injury and Jose Altuve’s continued ineffectiveness.
“I think with him in the lineup, a lot of things can happen,” said Springer, who returned to the starting lineup Wednesday. “All of us got a pretty good glimpse at the stuff he could do last year. He’s a very, very impactful bat. To have a guy in there like that, hopefully that can lengthen out the lineup a little bit and add a spark or two.”
Alvarez had four plate appearances in an intrasquad game at Whataburger Field on Wednesday. He has received 19 plate appearances since the team started intrasquad games last weekend. Alvarez has five doubles and a home run.
When Alvarez returns, Baker does not envision playing him on defense. Alvarez started nine games in left field last season but dealt with knee pain that lingered all season and into spring training. Alvarez ran the bases during Wednesday’s game at Whataburger Field.
Alvarez’s return will send Michael Brantley back to left field — though that doesn’t come without trepidation. Brantley is still recovering from a quad strain suffered against the Dodgers last month.
“We tried to have Yordan play the field in spring training, and his knees got sore, and he couldn’t play for a couple days,” Baker said. “That’s why we’ve got to try to get Michael back well enough for him to play the field.”
Brantley’s soreness, coupled with Alvarez’s absence, has made Brantley the team’s everyday designated hitter. Baker acknowledged Wednesday he “doesn’t know” when Brantley might be healthy enough to play left field again.
Wednesday, he was not. Springer started at designated hitter, and Brantley sat on the bench. Baker was hopeful that with the scheduled off day Thursday, consecutive rest days could help Brantley.
“We’re exchanging one guy with a bad hand for a guy with a bad leg,” Baker said.
Chance exists Osuna returns late in season
Astros closer Roberto Osuna will attempt to return later this season, manager Dusty Baker revealed Wednesday, somewhat of a surprising twist after the team placed Osuna on the 45-day injured list this week.
“I just got some news that Osuna is shut down from throwing for a couple weeks to reassess his situation and hope the rehab can get him back late this season,” Baker said.
Osuna left mid-appearance Aug. 1 against the Angels with what the team termed “right elbow soreness.” KRIV-TV reported an initial diagnosis recommended Tommy John surgery for the 25-year-old closer.
Though no one in the organization has confirmed a Tommy John diagnosis, Baker has been blunt about the seriousness of
Osuna’s injury. On Monday, the manager said Osuna was “not in a good way.”
“Right now, he’s not in a good way or else we wouldn’t have put him on the 45-day (injured list),” Baker said. “That’s not very pleasant news for us or for him. It is what it is. And we’ve got to deal with it.”
Osuna is eligible to return from the 45-day injured list Sept. 16.
Dodgers pitcher sees suspension reduced
Dodgers reliever Joe Kelly’s suspension for throwing at and taunting Astros hitters was reduced from eight games to five on appeal, according to ESPN.
Kelly’s appeal was heard Tuesday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters.
Kelly incurred the suspension after throwing at Alex Bregman’s head and taunting Carlos Correa during a July 28 game at Minute Maid Park. The matchup was the first between the Astros and Dodgers since Houston’s 2017 sign-stealing scheme was revealed.
Kelly did not play for the 2017 Dodgers — who lost the World Series to the Astros in seven games — but did play for the Red Sox, whom Houston beat in the American League Division Series.
In the sixth inning of Los Angeles’ 5-2 win July 28, Kelly threw near the head of Bregman and Correa. After the inning concluded, he taunted Correa as the teams left the field, prompting the benches to clear.
Baker was fined for the incident because his players left the bench, disobeying COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Roberts incurred a one-game suspension.
Kelly’s appeal affords hope for A’s outfielder Ramon Laureano, who is appealing a six-game suspension he received for charging the Astros’ dugout last weekend at the Oakland Coliseum. Houston hitting coach Alex Cintron received a 20-game ban for provoking and inciting Laureano.