Big Papi? Judge? Take your pick as Red Sox rate Yordan a level above

BOSTON -- Considering that Saturday was a bullpen day given two unexpected circumstances (Nick Pivetta needing rest due to arm fatigue and Cooper Criswell going on the COVID IL), the Red Sox did pretty well in the compete department and fell just short in a 5-4 loss to a perennially solid Astros squad.

It can be debated what was a bigger factor in the defeat. Was it the nasty offerings of Astros rookie starter Spencer Arrighetti (two hits, two runs, career-high 13 strikeouts over seven innings) or the lethal bat of Yordan Alvarez (two homers, three RBIs)?

However, there is no debating this: Alvarez is an utter nemesis nearly every time he comes to Fenway Park, but he can’t help but remind you of a similarly sized slugger who used to call Boston home.

“Being a lefty, he hits lefties. It seems like he likes hitting here,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “The wall keeps him close, he can shoot the other way. He’s the closest thing to David, probably, in the game. Very, very similar to David Ortiz.”

And that’s about the highest compliment Cora could pay Alvarez. But he came up with another one also.

“He just controls the strike zone, hits for average, he’ll take his walks. For me, he's up there with [Aaron] Judge, to be honest,” Cora said.

To get compared to Ortiz and Judge in the same press conference is pretty high praise for Alvarez. But his numbers at Fenway Park back that kind of talk. Including the postseason, Alvarez has played 14 road games against the Red Sox, slashing .463/.554/.963 with six doubles, seven homers and 19 RBIs.

“To me, he’s the best hitter right now in the big leagues,” Red Sox star slugger Rafael Devers said. “As a position player, you see him and he looks very uncomfortable to pitch to. So I don't know how the pitcher does it, but I feel like he's very good.”

It was opener Josh Winckowski who served up the first of Alvarez’s two homers, a 103.5-mph rocket to right that landed in Boston’s bullpen in right-center, traveling a Statcast-projected 411 feet. It would have been a homer in 29 of MLB’s 30 parks, but somehow wouldn’t have cleared the fence at Oracle Park in San Francisco.

“Yeah. I mean, that's just a really good swing by him,” Winckowski said. “A 1-0 count, changeup. From what I saw, it was, like, outer third, a little low. So just a really good swing by him on a decently good pitch.”

If it was another hitter, perhaps Winckowski would have been surprised.

“I think he just covers so many areas of the plate. There's a lot of really good hitters that do have a hole here and there, and if you get to it, you can do well,” Winckowski said. “But I think he just covers so much of the plate. I remember last year here at Fenway, I threw him a ball that was like in the middle of his shins height-wise and he scooped it the other way.

“So he just covers so much of the plate and there’s not really many places you can attack him.”

Red Sox catcher Danny Jansen worked with his pitchers on formulating a game plan that could contain Alvarez, but it didn’t work out.

Alvarez’s second homer was a two-run shot that went into the box seats down the right-field line against Brad Keller. That one was clipped at an exit velocity of 106.2 mph, traveling 422 feet. Yes, that one, Alvarez’s 24th of the season, would have been gone in all MLB parks.

“He’s a good hitter,” Jansen said. “Definitely gotta mix it up, and he doesn’t really chase a whole lot either. Just have to really go after his spots. The guy’s a good player, for sure. But keep going after him.”

The good news for the Red Sox is that Sunday is the last time Alvarez is scheduled to play a regular-season game at Fenway Park in 2024. Boston does have a three-game series against the left-handed-hitting masher in Houston Aug. 19-21.

But Alvarez merely has an .800 OPS against the Red Sox at Minute Maid Park, versus 1.517 at Fenway.