He’s not yet on the Houston Astros’ 40-man roster. But, if he keeps blistering baseballs the way he’s done so far in April, Yordan Alvarez will force the parent club to find a way to wedge his way onto it, with vaseline and a crowbar, if necessary.

The huge (6’5″, 225-pound) wall of sinew turns 22 in late June, and if he hasn’t hit the Minute Maid Park turf by then, I’d wager an August post-trade deadline debut, especially if the ‘Stros make a deal opening up a roster spot.

The left-hand hitting power producer currently rides buses in the Pacific Coast League for the Triple-A Round Rock Express, the top team in the PCL Southern Division at 8-5, through games of April 16.

Astros’ Launch Pad

Two years ago, Astros GM Jeff Luhnow hit the Houston airwaves with news of the fast-tracking of Alvarez’ progress through the organization’s system when the 19-year-old Yordan was playing 1B at the team’s Class A Quad Cities affiliate.

Alvarez has since expanded his repertoire to include left field and, of course, appears as a frequent DH.

Luhnow predicted, then, that Alvarez would reach Houston by 2019, and “soon be showing up on MLB top prospect lists.”

Done and Done

Alvarez currently ranks third on Houston’s top prospects list, according to MLB Pipeline, behind pitcher Forrest Whitley (himself primed for a sooner-than-later MLB debut) and Kyle Tucker, ranked #7 and #8, respectively on MLB’s Top 100. Alvarez finds himself prominently packed into the top 50 of MLB’s overall list, at #42.

Alvarez, incidentally, just made MLB Pipeline’s Team of the Week for the first week of the minor league season.

He opened eyes by homering in his first three at-bats in his second game of the season before finishing the week tied for the overall minor league home run lead and topping the PCL with seven, two more than Express teammate (and occasional Astro) Derek Fisher‘s five.

Alvarez is currently 4th in the PCL with a 1.326 OPS. He’s hitting .300 in 40 ABs for Round Rock, striking out only nine times while adding 10 walks to his .451 OBP.

That early-April explosive outburst marked the first career three-homer game for Alvarez and his third multi-homer performance in 204 games. He’s now well on his way toward surpassing his career-high total of 20 home runs, which he reached in 2018 in just 88 games between the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks and Triple-A levels.

While his batting average is down vs left-handed pitchers (.235, with .348 vs righties), he’s nonetheless hit three of his 7 homers against southpaws, including his first inning grand slam off the Nashville Sounds’ lefty Wes Benjamin, Tuesday, April 16. That slam brought his PCL-leading RBI total to 17.

The Express went on to spank the Sounds (the Texas Rangers’ AAA affiliate), 11-2.

The Race to Houston

Speaking of Derek Fisher, he’s certainly an option for a call-up anytime, just as easily as fellow Round Rock-ers Myles Straw and Kyle Tucker, should an injury or other scenarios develop at the top. The problem in Houston, as with most of the other positions, is the proliferation of immovable talent at all the outfield positions.

Regulars George Springer, Michael Brantley, and Josh Reddick aren’t going anywhere (although some whispers merging a trade and Reddick have been picked up), and alternates Tony Kemp and Jake Marisnick are capable and speedy fielders with occasional offensive punches.

All, of course, offer manager AJ Hinch plenty of flexibility and matchup options between the outfield and DH.

All three players have already made their Houston debuts: Fisher at the tail-end (and playoffs) of 2017, with Straw and Tucker joining the big club at various times last season.

FAST Track

Straw is the only right-handed bat of the FAST (Fisher, Alvarez, Straw, Tucker) quartet. So, while the other three would bring much-needed left-handedness to the Houston lineup, Straw has demonstrated world-class speed and consistent contact (and is learning a new infield position, as well) to help give him a leg up. He’s hitting .333 for the Express and is tied for the PCL lead in steals with five (out of six tries).

Tucker stumbled a bit with Houston after his late-season promotion, managing a lowly .161 in 64 ABs, whiffing 13 times and walking six. After reportedly tweaking his swing and undergoing an offseason weight program, Tucker is struggling out of the gate with Round Rock to the tune of .095 in 42 ABs, with 12 Ks and four walks.

In fact, Tucker’s early season free-fall has sent shock waves throughout the Astros universe, prompting a couple of warily-titled blogs this week questioning Kyle’s high prospect ratings.

Heir Yordan, or the New “El M áquino”?

To varying degrees, Straw, Tucker, and Fisher would offer speed, some extra-base projection, and flexibility on the Astros’ roster, at some point. But, only Alvarez offers some of that (minus the speed element) and more: A left-handed power bat that has proven itself in the native Cuban’s pro career so far.

All that’s left is to see if Alvarez and his productivity can play in the majors. With the recent left-handed power bat prospect flameouts of Brett Wallace, Jon Singleton, and AJ Reed, Houston is hungry to see if a left-handed Albert “The Machine” Pujols-type can find a fit in Space City.

Only one way to find out.