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The star Cuban player Yordan Álvarez kicks off this Wednesday as co-leader in RBIs in MLB, with 24 RBIs accumulated in the 2026 Major League Baseball season.
The player from Astros reached that figure after going 5-for-2, with a double and three RBIs in the game on Tuesday against the Guardians of Cleveland, in which the Houston team lost 5-8.
According to Pelota Cubana, the other co-leader in RBIs is the Cuban-American Sal Stewart, a prospect for the Cincinnati Reds, who also has 24 RBIs in the current season.
Beyond the shared leadership in runs batted in, Álvarez's numbers illustrate an offensive dominance nearly unprecedented at the start of this season.
The player born in Las Tunas leads MLB in home runs with 10 home runs and total bases with 68, and ranks second in hits (30), on-base percentage (.456), slugging (.747), and OPS (1.203).
His advanced metrics are equally outstanding: he leads the league in xwOBA (.596), is second in expected slugging (.953) and third in expected average (.412).
At the current pace of approximately 0.37 home runs per game, Álvarez is projected to reach 54 home runs this season, surpassing the Astros' all-time record of 47, set by Jeff Bagwell in 2000.
This stellar start becomes even more significant when considering that the 2025 season was a painful interlude for the designated hitter: a fracture in his right hand and an ankle sprain limited him to just 48 games, during which he batted .273 with only nine home runs.
The return of Álvarez in 2026 has been impressive from the start. On April 7, he won the American League Player of the Week award after batting .471 with three home runs and eight RBIs that week.
The manager Joe Espada has chosen to use Álvarez primarily as the designated hitter this season to protect him from further injuries, a decision that has so far yielded positive results.
The individual performance of Álvarez contrasts with the collective record of the Astros, who stand at 9-16 this season, far below the franchise's expectations.
His co-leader in RBIs, Sal Stewart, has emerged as one of the offensive surprises of the season's start. The Reds prospect hit two home runs with six RBIs against the Marlins on April 16, in one of the most impressive performances of his young Major League career.
Álvarez and the Astros will return to action this Wednesday against the Guardians at Progressive Field, Cleveland, in a game scheduled for 1:10 PM local time, where the Cuban player will aim to extend his lead in the league's major offensive categories.
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