 |
| Jose Abreu becoming next great MLB slugger. Photo Credit: Morry Gash/AP |
Jose Abreu’s return to the White Sox on Monday night vs. the Dodgers from the disabled list was a welcomed sight for the ball club and organization. He certainly made his mark on the game as he hit a two run home run to get back into the swing of things for Chicago. Beyond his impressive swing and the numbers he puts up now in the big leagues, his journey to being one of the brightest young sluggers in the game is a fascinating and incredible one.
By: Michael Hanley
Abreu’s arrival to the United States had been long anticipated by major league teams that had interesting in him. After it was announced that he had successfully defected from his homeland of Cuba, the race was on for teams to line up and make their best run at him. It was widely known at the time that Abreu was by far the best slugger that Cuba had in its country. His number spoke for themselves as he hit an incredible 33 home runs in just 66 games that he played in the Cuban league season of 2010-11. If you work the math out on that, those numbers come out to Abreu hitting two home runs in every game he participated in, not a bad average to have nor a bad way to draw attention of MLB scouts.
Jose Abreu, moved on and performed like a star in international baseball tournaments such as the World Baseball Classic. Even going up against some of the world’s best pitching talent in these tournaments could not figure out a way to get him out on a consistent basis. He had an answer to almost everything the opposing pitchers threw at him.This performance just added to his already dazzling skill set and potential as a major leaguer.
The 27 year old was setting himself up for a huge payday from an MLB team with the numbers he was putting up and also was helped from his fellow countrymen’s success in the major leagues. Yoenis Cespedes and Yasiel Puig are two players who came from Cuba and have gone on to become big stars for their respective teams in the A’s and Dodgers.The success of them had an effect on driving Abreu’s price further up than what was projected. Some people were saying he was in line to possibly a command a contract worth at or near $100 million dollars, which would have been historic in terms of money given to a prospect of his caliber.
The White Sox eventually were the winners of the Abreu sweepstakes and doled out a six year, $68 million dollar contract, the most ever given to a Cuban player and the largest total deal given out in club history. Now it is allot of money to commit to one player, especially one that has never taken a major league at bat. The combination of his upside, ability to cover the entire strike zone with his at bat and pure power is something too much to pass up for a team like the White Sox, who needed a power bat in the middle of their lineup.
So far, Chicago is getting what they paid for as Abreu has adapted to his position in the lineup and adjusted to the opposing pitcher's way of attacking him and his swing. So far this season he is batting .260 ,which is nothing to write home about, but he has hit 16 home runs and 44 RBIs which has more than given the White Sox offense a much needed jolt that it badly needed coming into this season.
As he gets more and more experience in the big leagues, Abreu will continue to get better and improve his overall game. He has the talent and ability to be a star player for many years to come for the White Sox and lead a revival of the franchise.
