Houston — On the field, Yordan Alvarez is a titan for the Astros, hitting 35 home runs in 2025, a symbol of Cuban power in the heart of America. But behind the loud bangs, Alvarez is making a different kind of noise — quiet, persistent, and emotional — as he devotes his heart and resources to helping migrant children find hope in Houston.
Alvarez was a dreamer in Las Tunas, Cuba, with an MLB dream but surrounded by poverty and uncertainty. His journey from his homeland to the United States was filled with fear and hope. “I know what it’s like to start over, to learn again, to find hope again,” Alvarez said. “And I don’t want any kid to have to fight this battle alone.”
Through the Astros Foundation, Alvarez has become the face of the Astros Education Initiative, which provides scholarships, school supplies, and language support to migrant children.
At an event at a Houston elementary school, 10-year-old Lucia, who recently arrived from Mexico, choked up as she held her new school supplies: “I was afraid to go to school because I didn’t understand anyone. But now I have the same opportunity as everyone else.”
The moment Alvarez bent down, put his hand on Lucia’s shoulder, and said in Spanish, “Nunca dejes de soñar” (Never stop dreaming) was captured on video and went viral on TikTok, with the hashtags #FromCubaToHouston and #AlvarezEduca.
Alvarez’s teammates in the locker room also felt the weight of this mission. “He didn’t just pitch for Houston,” Jeremy Peña said, “he pitched for all the kids who saw themselves in his story.”
That message resonates with the Astros’ 2025 slogan: “Enrich Community.” It’s not just enriching the scoreboard, it’s enriching a generation looking for a place in America.
The Astros are on the cusp of the playoffs, and for Alvarez, it’s about more than just the title game. “Every game is a message,” he said, “that dreams can start in Cuba, in Mexico, anywhere… and still fly all the way to Houston.”
And as Alvarez enters the postseason, it’s not just the powerful swing of an All-Star slugger that will be seen. It’s the silhouettes of immigrant children standing in the stands, believing that someday, they, too, can find a place in a community that has opened its arms.
The Astros Foundation has officially expanded its scholarship program specifically for immigrant children in Houston, calling on the community to join in. In the video, Alvarez appears simple, speaking directly into the camera:
“I was one of them. Now I want every kid to have the opportunity to write their own story.”
And perhaps, when Alvarez’s bat rings out again this fall around Minute Maid Park, that swing will not only carry the Astros to victory. It will carry the dreams of thousands of kids, from Cuba to Houston, from a difficult past to a bright future.
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