Pedro Alvarez is on a roller coaster and he’s taking Pittsburgh fans along for the ride.

The 25-year-old third baseman has shown flashes of the potential that made him the No. 2 overall pick in the 2008 draft. There have been plenty of swings and misses along the way, though, leading to frustrating dry spells.

In his first 12 games of the season, Alvarez hit a whopping .108 — 4-for-37 — with two home runs, four RBIs and three runs scored. That’s only four more hits than I would have against MLB pitching. Even more alarming, he racked up 16 strikeouts while drawing only one walk.

Just as Bucco fans were clamoring for a demotion, Alvarez put the Pirates on his back.

Over the next 10 games, Alvarez silenced his critics by hitting .417 — 15-for-36 — with five homers, four doubles, 11 RBIs and 10 runs scored.

I don’t think anyone expected the red-hot “El Toro” to sustain that kind of pace, but he appeared to be blossoming into the slugger Pirate fans have been waiting for.

However, Alvarez plummeted back to Earth over the next nine games, batting .103 — 3-for-29 — with no home runs, two RBIs and one run scored.

The drastic variation in performance leads to the question: Which version of Alvarez can Pirate fans expect to see the rest of the year? The answer is both.

There are going to be peaks and valleys all season for Alvarez. Entering Tuesday’s action, his strikeout rate was a maddening 35.1 percent. That’s simply too many whiffs to develop consistency. Even when Alvarez was on fire, he still managed to strike out once every four at-bats.

Don’t write off the 10-game surge as a fluke, though. As a rookie in 2008, Alvarez blasted 16 homers and 21 doubles on the way to 64 RBIs in just 95 games as a 23-year-old. Those statistics are much more similar to his current numbers than the disappointing, injury-plagued season of 2011.

Sometimes, he will leave Bucco fans shaking their heads in dismay. Other times, a well-timed homer will jolt Pittsburgh into a wild celebration. Get used to it, because the ups and downs will be plentiful.

He’s not alone, either.

Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays might be the best third baseman in baseball, but has more in common with Alvarez than some would expect.

Last season, at the age of 25, Longoria went through a roller coaster of his own. From July 24 to Aug. 5, the No. 3 pick in the 2006 draft hit .114 — 5-for-44 — with one double, two homers, eight RBIs and three runs scored.

For the year, Longoria — who was also dealing with the pressure of being a highly touted prospect in a small-market franchise — finished with 26 doubles, 31 home runs and 99 RBIs, while hitting at a .244 clip. Entering Tuesday, Alvarez was on pace to bat .223 with 27 doubles, 32 homers and 77 RBIs.

Alvarez isn’t the All-Star some anticipated he would be at this point in his career, but he’s certainly not a bust, either. When a player puts up numbers comparable to Longoria, he’s doing something right.

The talent is there, but consistency will be absent for the foreseeable future.

In the meantime, sit back and enjoy the ride.

Jason Orfao is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.