Yordan Alvarez strikes first in battle of MVP favorites with 2 homers in first inning

Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez is a slight favorite to win his first American League MVP. The co-favorite, Bobby Witt Jr., plays for the team the Astros faced Friday, and Alvarez made a strong early case with two home runs in the first inning.

The first homer was an opposite-field, two-run shot to start Houston’s onslaught. The second was a grand slam to center to give the Astros a 9-0 lead before Witt even got a chance to bat for the Kansas City Royals, who answered with five runs in the bottom of the first.

6 RBI’s in 1 inning are you joking?#VoteYordan ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/9lNxRIi2Bt

— Houston Astros (@astros) June 13, 2026

Alvarez became the first player to hit two home runs in the same inning this season. Detroit Tigers left fielder Riley Greene was the last to do it, in the ninth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on May 2, 2025. Sixty-three players have accomplished the feat in all, with Edwin Encarnación, Alex Rodriguez, Jeff King, Andre Dawson and Willie McCovey each doing it twice.

The 28-year-old designated hitter now leads the AL with 24 home runs and 54 RBIs, and his 1.100 OPS — after a single in the third inning — leads MLB by a wide margin. Witt had the edge in WAR, however, according to FanGraphs (3.8 to Alvarez’s 3.4) and Baseball Reference (3.6 to 3.1) heading into Friday’s action.

The American League will likely have an MVP other than Aaron Judge or Shohei Ohtani this season for the first time since José Abreu won in 2020, as Judge will be out for an extended period with a rib stress fracture.