Pirate rookie sensation Pedro Alvarez, takes a pitch and walks during his major league debut Wednesday night at PNC Park. The Pirates made six errors in a 7-2 loss to the White Sox.

PITTSBURGH — White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen picked up a Pittsburgh newspaper to find a considerable chunk of the sports page devoted to the Pirates' long-awaited decision to recall top prospect Pedro Alvarez.

Guillen immediately had two thoughts: Why couldn't the Pirates have waited a few days? And what if Alvarez is as good immediately as the Pirates believe he is?

"I'm kind of scared, I open up the sports page and it's like seven pages of this kid," Guillen said Wednesday. "I was telling (bench coach) Joey (Cora), `I might walk him to face somebody else."'

Alvarez didn't exactly struggle in his major league debut, although he committed one of the Pirates' six errors and went 0 for 2 with — yes, as Guillen hinted — a walk against John Danks as Pittsburgh lost its 10th in a row, 7-2 to the White Sox. Alvarez also drew the biggest cheers from the smallish crowd of 15,218 when he batted.

"I thought I had some good at-bats," said Alvarez, who had 13 homers and 53 RBIs in less than half a season at Triple-A Indianapolis. "I got some good looks at pitches. I was on some pitches, and I was able to slow the game down for myself."

Once the former Vanderbilt star gets comfortable being an everyday player, manager John Russell said, "We feel he's going to be a very special bat for us."

"I'm hoping this is the first step in a long and successful career," Alvarez said.

There is nothing in the 6-foot-2, 225-pound Alvarez's background to suggest the No. 2 pick in the June 2008 draft won't be. The White Sox players took notice, interrupting their pregame stretch to admire some of Alvarez's long drives during batting practice. He took Danks the opposite way once during the game, but left fielder Juan Pierre ran down his long fly ball in the seventh.

Nicknamed El Toro — the Bull — for his power as a rising young amateur star in New York City, the lefthanded-hitting Alvarez hit a school-record 22 homers for Vanderbilt in 2006 and added 18 more in 2007.

He spent less than 1½ seasons in the minors before being called up by the Pirates, who were well on their way toward a record-extending 18th consecutive losing season even before they brought up second baseman Neil Walker, outfielder Jose Tabata and right-hander Brad Lincoln ahead of Alvarez. All four started the season at Indianapolis.

The Pirates haven't had a power-hitting prospect this good since Barry Bonds in 1986.