Veteran first baseman Jose Abreu has signed on with los Senadores de San Juan to play in the Puerto Rican Winter League this offseason as he gears up for a hopeful big league return in 2025, reports Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com.
The 2024 season was an abject nightmare for Abreu, whose struggles with the Astros led to him getting optioned to Triple-A at one point and eventually released midway through the second season of a three-year, $58.5MM free agent deal that stands as a colossal misstep for the Astros (who were operating without a general manager at the time of the deal, leaving owner Jim Crane to oversee baseball operations decisions). Abreu hit just .237/.296/.383 in year one of the contract but still popped 18 homers and enjoyed a strong finish that created some cautious optimism about the current season. Any such hopes of a rebound quickly faded, however, when Abreu tanked with a calamitous .124/.167/.195 batting line in 120 plate appearances prior to his release.
It was an unfathomable decline for a former AL MVP who was a consistent force in the middle of the White Sox lineup for nine years prior to signing in Houston. Even detractors who pointed to red flags in his batted-ball profile and declining power in his final year with Chicago couldn’t have reasonably predicted a drop-off of such extreme magnitude.
With that type of production (or lack thereof) in the immediate rearview mirror and Abreu’s 38th birthday looming in January, the odds of a resurgence feel fairly slim. That said, Abreu is still locked into the third year of that Astros contract, meaning any team can sign him and owe him only the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the big league roster.
For a player with Abreu’s track record of thunderous production — to say nothing of his frequently cited leadership traits and clubhouse value — taking what amounts to a free look could hold appeal to a number of clubs. That could be especially true for payroll-conscious clubs with younger in-house options who could grow into a more prominent role but are as of yet unproven. Only time will tell whether he shows enough in winter ball to get that opportunity, but his production will be worth tracking; the Puerto Rican Winter League kicks off in November.
Future Yankee 1B man? They love aging vets who don’t produce.
The Brewers will give him a minor deal they haven’t cared about 1B since Thames left
They have Hoskins who they’re paying $18 million a year, which is a lot for them.
And Hoskins is not bad. The low average is offset by hefty power. I think he will be back with Brewers in 2025.
MLB: Power hitters usually have a low batting average.
“And Hoskins is not bad.”
Granted he was coming back from injury, but Hoskins had a 98 OPS+ and a negative WAR. Maybe he will bounce back next year but his EV, hard hit %, and line drive % were all below career averages. After May, his OPS was below .700. He’ll be back in Milwaukee but I wouldn’t be surprised if they hedged their bets and took a few cheap gambles like Abreu.
Ya, he was having a good comeback until he was put on the IL in May and never got it going again. I fully expect him to exercise his option for next year and also be a valuable piece in the Brewers lineup. He also has strong intangibles. He’s a fighter and the guys and fans love him.
@avenger65
Only 2 of the top ten homerun hitters in the majors this year had a batting average lower then .279 (Schwarber .248, Santander .235)
3 of the top ten hit over .300. (Judge .322, Ohtani .310, Ozuna .302)
The old school methodology was swing for the fences or hit for contact. A lot of home run hitters these days are just plain good hitters.
That’s not even an old school methodology. What top 25 hitter in MLB history had a low batting average?
Mike Schmidt .267
Mark McGwire .263
Reggie Jackson .262
Harmon Killebrew .256
Point taken though.
Not sure get this metsin4. Lot of power hitters in modern game have low average, they also don’t walk alot either, making them HR or bust. Power hitters of the past, like Harmon Killebrew hit the 4050HR a year, then walked 90-110 a year, making them valuable players and not liabilities if ball didn’t leave the park.
today, Schwarber pretty much only slugger can count on huge bb rate. Rest? It’s HR or bust.
Who are you talking about?Judge? Ohtani? Soto? Ramirez? Henderson? Marte? Ozuna? Rooker? I can keep going down the list. The only one really fitting your talking point is Cal Raleigh and he’s an excellent catcher.
There is zero chance this happens
Or the Angels lol
No
Jose Abreu is no quitter. I can appreciate that. Hope it works out for him!
I wish him the best too…
JUST HOPE HE’S NOT STARTING AT 1ST BASE FOR THE YANKEES ON OPENING DAY 2025
🙂
Hah! I’m calling for Goldschmidt bc he’s right up Cashman’s alley for a ’22 Matt Carpenter resurgence. But not if they won’t cut him if Ben Rice is taking steps forward.
You already know Cashman squealed with delight when he saw that the Cardinals were moving on from Goldschmidt. He’s already planning his speech for the press conference.
“We’ve had our eyes on Paul for a while now, and when we saw an opportunity to bring him on board we didn’t hesitate, because he’s Paul Goldschmidt.”
Brian Cashman has entered the chat!
I see Abreu in Pittsburgh.
I wish him every success in Winter ball. If he does well in Winter Ball, maybe he will feel more comfortable ending on a positive note. I don’t think there is a path to a guaranteed 2025 MLB contract as a starter. But I would not mind if he proves me wrong.
@MLB Top 100 Commenter
The way I see it, he had a great winter and someone signs him to a minor deal to see what happens. Worst case, he’s terrible and they cut him with minimal costs.
The Astros will still be paying him in ’25. He’s looking for a S.T. invite from a team which pays him the league min. and offers him a greater opportunity to rebound. I think he’ll find from a team lacking veteran presence.
Big mistake. The pitchers down there will be gunning for him and he’ll just wind up looking worse. Should have just taken some time, enrolled in driveline, and made you tube.videos of his progress to rebuild value. Immediately fire his agents who thought to send him to PR
Who says that he can’t do all of those things at the same time? He’s got the money to bring Driveline resources to PR. He agreed to go to AAA when didn’t have to. I fail to see what his agent has to do with anything.
It’s too much to do all at once. My idea works and hopefully for his career, he’ll listen and make the adjustment I suggested .
You’re quite the thinker there, aren’t ya terry. Maybe a bit arrogant & pompous but quite the thinker. Ahahaha!
When Abreu went down to the minors, he barely had any game action. He was working on his mechanics. He doesn’t need to go all out in Winter Ball and play every game.
It’s equivalent to playing AA baseball. If he can’t hack that then he’s got no business trying to make a comeback.
Jose was great for the White Sox during his tenure. I wish him the best, and hopefully he does make a comeback!
Wait have nothing to lose by bringing him back. If he doesn’t have it anymore he can walk away whenever it’s painfully obvious. If he bounces back it’s a great story. Either way maybe sell a few more tickets at least
WSox not wait
Acoss1331: I hope so too. Maybe shaving off that ugly beard will help him regain his ability to play the game. That thing’s got to go!
Considering how bleak things are for White Sox fans, Jose being on the team would definitely be a positive note lol
Avenger65,
I agree his braided beard has to go! A simple beard would be okay!
I foresee him getting a cheap contract with the Marlins. They did the same thing with Yuli Gurriel and there is a huge Cuban population to sell tickets to in Miami.
Yes. To the Fish. Nothing to lose there. And if by chance he plays well, a trade deadline candidate.
Time to hang it up Jose. Made millions more than you ever would in Cuba.
Minor league deal with either the White Sox or Marlins. I can’t see any other team being interested…
Reasonable chance someone would play him at some point in the season when injuries hit but can’t see anyone taking him in as more than minor league depth piece to start the season. There’s too much 1B depth floating around the league for him to get more than that.
Quit suggesting the Marlins take every bum out there. They need to get better, not worse
Assuming the pirates don’t make a more sure thing move, seems like a great option for a buy low. One year at next to nothing and a 5m option with a 2m buy out.
Good chance he fails but is also just a couple years out from being pretty good.
I’m surprised more people haven’t suggested the Pirates as a landing spot in the comments. He seems right up their alley based on who they put at 1st base the past few years.
If he looks fresh in Winter Ball, I could see the M’s bringing him into Spring Training to be the weak side platoon partner for Raley, until Locklear forces his way into a fulltime spot. It probably wouldn’t work out given how bad Abreu has been, but it would pretty much be a free chance if they don’t otherwise spend more to get someone like Mountcastle.
Looks like Mariner material.
Those big contracts kill teams. Having no option but to eat the money when the players have non performance of what the contract was signed for, it;s a crummy system.
Detroit;s own Swindlers list candidate Baez is another one. That was dead at the get go. Maeda, Baez being owed almost a 100 million is insane. Totally insane. If Detroit never hires a high priced F.A. again I;ll be happy. It’s buyer beware with these contracts, a total waste if they don’t have to refund for non performance.
How do you feel about paying big money for their homegrown, like Skubal?
That’s a Tiger F,A. So they’ve had his low cost years, and decided to keep him. That’s totally different. A team that has a player for 5,6,7,8 years of his low coat years, and have fully evaluated him they know what he is.
If Houston does not re sign Bregman, that to me is a huge buyer beware. I would love to have a hard hitting first baseman who was left handed an over 6;3″ tall. I;d settle for either Greene, or Carpenter learning first base too. I would not sign the Polar Bear either to get one.
If the Tigers and Skubal can’t make a good deal then okay. If they can then whatever the future holds they’ve had him his whole career. When Chicago said no, it should have made other teams shy away from Abreu. The Tigers don’t have to do that now, probably never again either. Tork got a hit, okay ! Detroit is rocking now.
Yuli might play in the World Series
Batting cleanup for your 2025 Pittsburgh Pirates…. I hope not.
He’s getting a minor league deal somewhere for next season if he hits in winter ball. Look for a team that has its budget slashed by losing TV revenue to be in on him. Why not almost a free look.
I doubt very many teams will give him a shot, if any. He’d need to look really good in winter ball. It would almost certainly be a minor league deal with a spring training invite. Maybe a team with recent history of giving old veterans minor league deals, like the Braves, Yankees, Royals, Marlins, etc. Or maybe the white Sox bring him back for a year to finish his career because they aren’t competing anyways next year, might as well bring back a familiar fan favorite to maybe get some more fans in the seats
Little surprised the Rockies don’t take a shot. League min signing, he’s got pop in that park, doesn’t really need to show much to possibly flip. If he doesn’t work out then cut. Idk… prob the worst team in the league, seems like having that vet wouldn’t hurt and a gamble worth taking
Good luck
He hit .124 with 2 HR 117 at bats this year.
And he is how old?
I respect his desire to play and at least attempt to work till the end of his contract. Good luck Jose in baseball and life.
Pirates can use him at 1B this coming year.
Houston should consider a contract to Yuli. He is much better than Singleton.