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Houston – In an unexpected revelation, a small fracture has been identified in Yordan Alvarez's right hand, sidelining the Houston Astros’ star player indefinitely. This discovery comes after a month-long stint on the injury list initially attributed to "inflammation." General Manager Dana Brown shared on Saturday that imaging conducted the previous evening revealed a fracture near the fourth metacarpal.

Alvarez, who hasn't played in a major-league game since May 2, admitted on Saturday that the injury happened in a game prior to that date. Despite the pain, he continued to play, believing it wasn't a significant issue. "I didn't think it was going to be something big," Alvarez said through an interpreter. "But I think the fact that I kept playing caused my hand to stress more and caused the small fracture."

Initial imaging on May 6 suggested inflammation and fluid build-up but did not reveal the fracture. After three weeks away from the field with cautious optimism from team officials about his return for the weekend series against the Tampa Bay Rays, Alvarez still experienced pain during practice. On Friday evening, additional imaging finally showed the fracture, which Brown stated is "60 percent healed."

The incident has raised questions about the Astros' medical protocols. Both Brown and Alvarez confirmed that only two images of Alvarez's hand were taken: one on May 6 and the latest on Friday evening. Alvarez also received a second opinion through his agent, Dan Lozano, from MVP Sports Group.

Brown acknowledged the complexity involved in diagnosing such injuries, emphasizing that inflammation and fluid can obscure imaging results. This situation has drawn parallels to previous medical missteps by the Astros, including the delayed recognition of Kyle Tucker's shin fracture last season after initially diagnosing it as a shin contusion for nearly three months.

Despite public concern, Alvarez expressed no dissatisfaction with the team's medical staff, indicating he should have requested further studies earlier. However, this transparency gap has damaged public perception and trust in the Astros' handling of player injuries.

"Just let it heal completely, and he'll be back," Brown concluded, avoiding any specific timeline for Alvarez's return. This cautious approach leaves Astros fans with lingering questions about the reliability of the team's medical evaluations and injury management strategies.