Jose Abreu was once again a stalwart in the Chicago White Sox lineup. In his ninth and final White Sox season, the 35-year-old played in 157 games for the club. It was a season in which many players underperformed. Abreu was not one of those players. However, 2022 was the final year of the three-year contract he signed in 2022. His departure became official after recently signing a three-year contract with the Houston Astros.
The Soul of the Sox
Abreu, as mentioned before, played in all but five games for the 81-81 Chicago White Sox. Abreu's power numbers dipped in 2022 with a career-low 15 home runs, while driving in just 75 runs. Abreu posted a .378 on-base percentage and a .304 batting average, which are his highest marks since his rookie season in 2014. He produced a career-low strikeout rate of 16.2%.
A decline often occurs for players of Abreu's age, but other factors contributed to his power outage. Abreu’s main protection in the lineup was either hurt or vastly underperformed. There was little protection in the lineup for the Cuban slugger except for Eloy Jimenez. Jimenez returned after a long IL stint in July and played just 84 games. Nevertheless, Abreu still finished 5th in WAR and WRC+ among the first baseball basemen.
What's On Tap Next?
Despite Luis Robert’s wishes, the White Sox decided to let Abreu walk to clear up a roster jam at first base and DH. Andrew Vaughn desperately needs to moved out of the outfield to first base and Eloy Jimenez is destined for DH. The newly linked three-year deal will likely be Abreu’s last MLB contract and he will be compensated well.
Abreu’s age will certainly play a factor in his performance over the three-year deal (36-38). He is entering the twilight of his career and may no longer be the 30 HR and 100 RBI slugger we have been accustomed to, but that remains to be seen. The Astros powerful lineup will offer the type of protection he's never had in his career. Add in the short porch in left-field at Minute Maid park and a monster year may be on the horizon.
Abreu did everything he could to lead the White Sox back to the World Series. Simply put, the Sox failed to build a competitive team around Abreu during his nine-year tenure. He left it all on the field for the White Sox and became a franchise legend despite playing through two rebuilds. The Sox legend will have a statue at the corner of 35th and Shields one day, but for now he'll be chasing a World Series ring as a member of the Houston Astros.
Final Grade: A+
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