Alvarez has 'pretty significant' ankle sprain, timetable for return unclear

The Houston Astros expect Yordan Alvarez to be sidelined "for a while" after the star slugger was diagnosed with a "pretty significant" left ankle sprain, manager Joe Espada told reporters Tuesday, according to SportsTalk 790.

Espada wouldn't provide a potential timeline for his return, other than to note that Alvarez is in the midst of getting treatment and the team is taking his recovery "one day at a time." The Astros are not putting Alvarez on the injured list yet.

"Did you just hear what I said? This is gonna take some time," Espada said when asked how long the team might play one man short. "Listen, one day at a time. I'm not gonna give you days, weeks, what we're going to do next. (We're) just gonna have to sit down and wait."

Alvarez suffered the injury when he slipped on home plate while scoring a run in the first inning of Tuesday's game against the Texas Rangers. He had to be helped down the steps to the clubhouse, and was later seen on crutches and with a walking boot on his injured foot.

Alvarez has only played in 48 games this season due to injuries. He missed over three months due to a fractured right hand that was originally misdiagnosed as inflammation.

Since returning from the hand issue, the 28-year-old has looked much more like himself. Alvarez hit .369/.462/.569 with three homers and nine RBIs over 78 plate appearances after coming off the IL in late August, and was poised to play a major role in Houston's push for an AL West title.

The Astros have been hit hard by injuries all season, and were already missing a multitude of star pitchers, plus All-Star infielder Isaac Paredes, before Alvarez's latest injury. A September slump has also dropped the club out of first place in the AL West. Still, the Astros enter Tuesday holding a three-game lead on Cleveland for the final wild-card spot, and are just a half-game behind Seattle in the division.

Espada still has belief that his team can withstand the loss of Alvarez for however long he's out to secure the franchise's ninth consecutive playoff berth.

"We need him in there. But those are the things that we can't control. It was a freak accident, (it) happens on a baseball field, but that's not what we need right now," Espada said. "But we do have guys here that understand the situation that we're in. We got talent, we got guys who want it. We got guys that can fight and get us through this stretch, and I expect those guys to do just that."