Cora compares Yordan to Papi after Astros star dominates at Fenway

After watching Yordan Alvarez punish his team at Fenway Park on Saturday, Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora praised the Houston Astros slugger, comparing him to a Red Sox legend.

"(He's) the closest thing to David (Ortiz), probably, in the game," Cora said, according to MassLive's Sean McAdam. "Very, very very similar to David Ortiz."

Alvarez was putting on quite the Big Papi impression at Fenway Park. The three-time All-Star crushed a pair of homers and drove in three runs during Houston's 5-4 win.

(Video source: MLB.com)

In his 18 career appearances at Fenway Park before Saturday, the 27-year-old hit .344/.436/.641 with four homers and 17 RBIs, plus another dinger during the 2021 playoffs. Alvarez's 1.143 OPS at Fenway is his second-highest at any stadium where he's played at least 15 games.

Those Fenway numbers - along with his overall approach at the plate and numerous postseason heroics for Houston - can certainly make one think of Ortiz, one of the most feared sluggers of his era. The Hall of Famer even invoked the comparison himself last October when he referred to Alvarez as "Baby Papi" following a playoff game.

"He controls the strike zone, hits for average, he'll take his walks," Cora said of Alvarez. "For me, he's up there with (Aaron) Judge, to be honest with you. You bring in a lefty, he hits lefties. I don't know, it seems like he likes hitting here."

Cora was far from the only member of the Red Sox to praise Alvarez.

"For me, he's the best hitter right now in the big leagues," third baseman Rafael Devers said. "As a position player, you see him and it looks very uncomfortable to pitch to him, so I don't know how the pitcher does it. But I feel like he's very good."

After Saturday's outing, Alvarez is now hitting .304/.390/.552 with 24 homers and 62 RBIs this season.