What happened: Ken Rosenthal profiles Yordan Alvarez as baseball's best hitter, framing him as "a contact hitter with the most power in the league." Alvarez is on a roll that, per Rosenthal, has observers across the sport in awe. His power surge is helping push the Astros back toward relevance.

Why it matters: Alvarez's bat anchors a Houston lineup trying to reassert itself, and a locked-in version of him raises the team's ceiling for the stretch ahead. The same offensive firepower has shown up in recent Astros results, underscoring why his form is drawing this kind of notice.

What to watch: Watch whether Alvarez can sustain the pace and how far his bat carries the Astros in the standings.