The Atlanta Braves’ Truist Field may have given home field advantage a little too much on Friday.
Houston Astros hitter Yordan Álvarez abruptly left a game at the Braves in the fifth inning, with the team citing an “illness” as the reason. It was later revealed that Álvarez was hospitalized:
Astros manager Dusty Baker shed some light on the situation after the game when he revealed that Álvarez was suffering from shortness of breath made worse by Atlanta’s in-game fireworks display. Fortunately, Álvarez has been reported to be in stable condition.
From the Associated Press:
“He’s being examined by the doctors,” Baker said. “They said all his vital signs were fine. He feels normal but he still has to go to our doctor, the smoke somehow made it worse.
“I’m glad we got him out when we made it because I looked up and he was in the dugout and it was a scary moment because it could be anything but they said he’s fine at the moment goes.”
Baker reportedly added that the team didn’t even see Álvarez, who played at left field, in distress until he reported to the dugout.
The Braves would eventually win the World Series rematch 6-2, though the Astros’ record remains the best in the American League at 77-44.
Álvarez, who signed a six-year, $115 million contract extension in June, is in the midst of a career year on the record, starting Friday with a .297/.401/.616 with 31 home runs for the first-seeded Astros. In a league without Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani, he would be seriously considered for MVP.
Jordan Álvarez was taken to the hospital with shortness of breath. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)