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Why Astros' postseason 'X-Factor' is not Yordan Alvarez
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- Why Astros' postseason 'X-Factor' is not Yordan Alvarez
Why Astros' postseason 'X-Factor' is not Yordan Alvarez originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Houston Astros enter the postseason with the AL MVP favorite in their lineup.
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Yordan Alvarez should be considered the most feared hitter in baseball for this year's playoffs.
But the rest of Houston's lineup has been mediocre at best.
"The Astros have the presumptive AL MVP in Yordan Alvarez, but the rest of the offense has produced a .233/.300/.396 line this year," Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter wrote. "He will need to replicate his memorable performance in the 2023 ALCS for pretty much the entirety of October."
Clearly, the Astros rely on Alvarez to do most of their offensive damage, but he may not be the AL West club's "X-Factor" during the Wild Card Series against the Chicago White Sox .
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Instead, Reuter has tabbed rookie center fielder Lucas Spence as someone who can help Houston make a deep postseason run.
"Lucas Spence went 6-for-18 with four home runs in five games after being recalled from Triple-A when [Daulton] Varsho and [Brice] Matthews were placed on the injured list," Reuter added. "He suddenly looks like the no-doubt starting center fielder for the club's playoff run."
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Varsho is unavailable in the Wild Card Series due to left wrist inflammation caused by cysts.
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He is a Gold Glove outfielder but has hit poorly following a midseason trade from the Toronto Blue Jays .
Spence has just 19 MLB games under his belt but looks up for the challenge, hitting the first three home runs of his career in a single game during the last week of the regular season against the Athletics .
