The Astros may have just doomed the Mariners' AL West hopes with latest move

It was only a couple weeks ago that the Seattle Mariners seemed to have the Houston Astros on the run in the AL West. But then things got complicated in a hurry, and now the latest news is sure to make Mariners fans feel maximum exasperation.

Alas, Yordan Alvarez is back.

The Astros activated the three-time All-Star off the injured list on Tuesday. He had missed close to four months with a hand injury that seemed innocent at first, but which was later revealed to be a serious problem that proved difficult to return from.

Alvarez's 100-game absence should have been the Mariners' window to take the AL West lead and run away with it. Instead, they're 1.5 games off the pace and looking up at an opponent that just got significantly stronger.

The Mariners will lament not catching the Astros during Yordan Alvarez's absence

Mariners fans should need no introduction to Alvarez. He is one of the game's great hitters against everyone when he's healthy, with his first six major league seasons yielding a 166 OPS+ and a 162-game average of 42 home runs.

And yes, he does seem to have it out for the Mariners in particular. He has a .989 OPS for his career against them, which isn't even counting that one memory everyone in Seattle would prefer to keep buried.

The 28-year-old Alvarez did get off to a slow start before he hit the injured list on May 3, as he hit just .210 with three homers in 29 games. But he sure looked like his usual self during a four-game rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi, going 7-for-15 with four doubles.

As far as the Astros are concerned, Alvarez couldn't be returning at a more perfect time. With a .684 OPS and less than four runs per game to show for August so far, their offense is badly in need of pick-me-up. And with seven straight home games against the woeful Colorado Rockies and the fading Los Angeles Angels on deck, he'll get a golden chance to make an immediate impact.

Meanwhile in Seattle, the Mariners have recovered from a brutal 2-7 road trip with wins in three out of four at home. Yet first place has remained elusive, and now FanGraphs has them as a 45.0 percent underdog to end up with the AL West crown.

The season isn't over yet, of course, and the Mariners will get three more chances to take it directly to the Astros when they visit Houston for three between September 19 and 21. And who knows? Between now and then, anything could happen.

Still, this is what they call "sugarcoating it." With the way things stand right now, it sure looks like the Mariners missed their best shot to make up ground. And with Alvarez back, the Astros may not be interested in giving them another.