Altuve wins Player of the Week for second time this season

The Houston Astros announced that Jose Altuve was named the AL Player of the Week for the week of Sept. 4-10, according to a press release.

This is Altuve's fifth career award and the second one he's received this season, the previous honors being the week of Aug. 7-13.

In the six games the Astros played last week, Altuve recorded a batting average of .357 (10-28). To go along with that, he hit six home runs which led Major League Baseball (MLB) that week and recorded eight RBIs, nine runs scored and an OPS of 1.400. On Sept. 4, he hit two home runs against the Rangers and came back the next day with a three-homer game against Texas, helping lift his club to a series sweep. Altuve hit a home run in four straight innings, a feat not seen in MLB since 1900 and became the first player in history to hit five home runs in seven innings. The Astors infielder also became the first player in franchise history to hit a home run in four consecutive at-bats.          

Altuve’s hot streak made him the fourth Astros player in history to hit multiple home runs in back-to-back games, a record untouched since 2000 when it was done by Richard Hidalgo, according to the release. Altuve finished his week with another home run on Sunday, giving him six home runs in six games. The last Astros player to hit as many home runs in the same span was Yordan Alvarez in 2022. An Astros player has taken home the Player-of-the-Week award four times this season, two of which have been Altuve. The other two are left-handed pitcher Framber Valdez and outfielder Chas McCormick.         

Altuve and the Astros currently lead the American League East as the season nears a close, per MLB.com. With only 15 games left to play, the Astros hold a half-game lead over the Texas Rangers and lead the Seattle Mariners by one-and-a-half games, both teams who have a Wild Card spot at the moment.