Yordan Alvarez Is Obliterating the Rangers and Their Manager Has No Answer For Him

Alright, Emerald City, can we talk about what went down with our AL West "friends" in Houston and Texas last night? Because Yordan Alvarez, that dude, is on a different planet right now. The Astros slugger blasted not one, but *two* homers against the Rangers. Again! That's his second straight two-homer night, which is just absolutely wild. It carried Houston to a tight 4-3 victory, and honestly, if you're a Mariners fan, you gotta be watching this guy. He's a problem, plain and simple.

The 3-0 Slider That Broke Everything

Can you even imagine? It's the eighth inning, score tied, 3-0 count. Most guys are taking a pitch, right? Not Alvarez. He saw a slider he liked, took a rip, and BAM! That ball left the bat at 110 mph and sailed right into the batter's eye. Jeremy Pena, his own teammate, was like, "Who swings on a 3-0 slider and hits it 110 [mph] to the batter's eye?" Pena said it shows Alvarez is "two steps ahead," knowing they wouldn't challenge him. Rangers manager Skip Schumaker clearly felt the heat. He didn't walk Alvarez in that pivotal eighth inning, even after throwing three balls. He admitted, "It's tough to walk the leadoff hitter, no doubt, with a tie game in the eighth inning," but then added, "hindsight is always maybe we should have just put him on at that point." You know it's bad when the opposing manager is second-guessing himself on the spot! They *did* intentionally walk him in the ninth after Pena singled, which just further proves how terrified they were. Pena even playfully told Alvarez, "You've got to thank me for that walk. You owe me that walk." That's the kind of respect, or fear, Alvarez is commanding right now.

Globe Life Field Is Yordan's House, Apparently

This guy's love affair with Globe Life Field is just bonkers. Alvarez has stacked up 17 home runs in only 33 games played there, and he’s smashed five of those just in the first three games of this four-game series. When asked about it, he just shrugged through an interpreter, "Apparently, I love playing here." He's already at 20 homers for the season in only his 56th game, making him the fastest Houston slugger ever to hit that mark. Our rivals have a true monster on their hands, and so do we. For context, Munetaka Murakami of the White Sox also hit his 20th that same night, but only Philadelphia's Kyle Schwarber is ahead in the majors with 21. Alvarez's first solo shot last night pulled the Astros even at 2-2 against Texas ace Jacob deGrom, who had actually struck him out in the first. Guess Alvarez got the last laugh, even joking about it with his teammates. Look, while our AL West rivals are dealing with the Alvarez problem, the Mariners are just out there taking care of business. How about that 9-1 beatdown of the Athletics last night? Julio Rodriguez and Cal Raleigh, let's keep that energy flowing! We've got another game coming up, and we'll be here watching every pitch. Let's keep building, Seattle!

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.