José Abreu’s long-awaited resurgence could spark Astros offense

HOUSTON — José Abreu sauntered into second base wanting nothing more than the baseball he’d just bludgeoned. It exited his bat at 106.2 mph, another sign of a long-awaited turnaround in a season that once seemed inexorably headed for disaster. Abreu signaled toward a dugout that didn’t need any additional reminder. Teammates lined the top step, some asking for the baseball while others showered Abreu in applause. 

Milestones like the one Abreu just achieved are sacred inside major-league clubhouses. Teammates of those involved count them down as they draw near, almost always away from public consumption. Jose Altuve awoke on Tuesday with 999 career runs. Martín Maldonado had 99 home runs. And Abreu arrived at Minute Maid Park one hit away from 1,500. Everyone around all of them knew it. 

“I think that was the biggest reason why I signed here in this organization: we’re just a great, big family,” Abreu said through an interpreter. “Sooner or later, I thought we’re going to have a moment like this and I think today was one of those great moments that showed, yeah, this is why I signed here.”

To start the second inning of a 6-1 win against the Nationals, Abreu saw seven pitches from Washington starter Patrick Corbin. He fell behind 1-2 before spoiling two straight sinkers foul. Corbin came with a third. It stayed flat. Abreu annihilated it into the right-centerfield gap, gaining him entry into an exclusive group.

Abreu is the 12th Cuban-born player to tally at least 1,500 major-league hits. Three of the others are Hall of Famers: Minnie Miñoso, Tony Oliva and Tony Pérez. Abreu is the 21st active player to cross the threshold and the third Astro, joining Altuve and Michael Brantley. 

“It’s a big number, especially for him. We all know his background, his story. He’s a very humble guy. He likes to help people,” Altuve said. “We all know what he’s capable of doing. We trust him and the whole team was really excited and happy for him.”

Abreu has been an Astro for seven months. Seeing how much his teammates admire him makes it seem like seven years. The respect he receives is almost palpable, even amid the worst start of his major-league career. Abreu’s track record and work ethic have seemed to outweigh his on-field production, affording him a long runway to correct his careening season. 

“I think we can all agree and we all know that baseball is a very difficult sport. Just getting adjusted and accustomed to the new personalities in the clubhouse, getting accustomed to the field are all things that can take some time,” Abreu said. “For me, recently, we’ve been getting the results that we wanted. But just know I’ve been working with (hitting coach Alex Cintrón) every single day. I’m still not where I want to be, but we’re going to continue working.”

Since the start of June, Abreu has raised his OPS by 38 points. He entered Tuesday’s game averaging a 92.2 mph exit velocity on his 30 batted balls this month. Abreu never eclipsed 88 mph in either April or May, two of the worst months of his major-league career. 

Abreu struck two more balls at least 99.3 mph on Tuesday, too, only strengthening his June surge. His 46.7 percent hard-hit rate, 30 percent line drive rate and .305 wOBA this month are all season highs. His 43.3 percent groundball rate is a season low. 

Abreu has four extra-base hits in 48 June plate appearances. He had 10 in his previous 225. Four of Abreu’s last five games have featured multiple hits. He had eight total multi-hit games in the 60 that preceded it. 

“He’s been hitting the ball well,” manager Dusty Baker said. “He’s hitting the ball on a line. His timing is a lot better and, when your timing is good, usually you get good results. You just want them to keep coming.”

The Astros don’t want it. They need it. Yordan Alvarez injured his right oblique during the team’s last road trip and still has not resumed swinging a bat. His stint on the injured list is expected to exceed the 10-day minimum, though not much else is known about the severity of his injury. The Astros did not make Alvarez available for interviews prior to Tuesday’s game. After it, Baker acknowledged what many feared.

“Yordan’s a ways off, so we have to carry on until he gets back,” Baker said.

Abreu spiraled into such a deep abyss that this incremental progress won’t alter his overall numbers. He still boasts a .579 OPS with a .279 slugging percentage. Among qualified hitters, only Jean Segura boasts lower numbers. Abreu’s 62 wRC+ matches Javier Báez for the second-lowest in the sport. 

It is just June 13 and Abreu may already be out of time to salvage the sort of slash line he is paid to produce. Doing so would require the sort of torrid streak he hasn’t shown any inkling of authoring. The Astros aren’t asking for that, but Abreu turning back into an actual threat could transform their wounded offense into something more dynamic. 

“Everybody in this clubhouse is very sad and very disappointed with what happened to Yordan,” Abreu said.” We all would like him to be in the lineup every day and be healthy, but in baseball, sometimes it’s difficult to stay healthy just because of everything we do. After that, it’s up to everyone else in the lineup to try to support him and try to continue to hold it down until he’s back.”

Abreu must become a bigger part of the process. His double in the second inning amounted to a personal milestone and nothing more. The vulnerable back half of Houston’s lineup failed to advance him past second base. Baker lamented it after the game, but for this lineup to find any sustained success, those near the middle of the order must make a bigger impact. 

Abreu hit fifth on Tuesday and should stay there throughout Alvarez’s absence. The Astros touted Abreu as an elite run-producer after signing him this winter. He entered Tuesday’s game having taken a team-high 78 plate appearances with runners in scoring position. He produced just 27 RBIs. 

A 79th arrived in the seventh inning. Maldonado began it with the 100th home run of his career. Altuve worked a walk and Alex Bregman struck a single, putting Houston in a position to widen a three-run lead. Kyle Tucker struck out, sending Abreu to the plate. He evened the count against Nationals reliever Chad Kuhl, who again tried to beat Abreu with a sinker on the inner half.

Abreu kept his hands inside and deposited the pitch into shallow right field. Altuve crossed home plate, producing another milestone on a night full of them.

“Baseball is one of those sports where, one day you feel good, the next day you don’t,” Abreu said. “I think the biggest thing is I’m going to go out there, continue battling, know what these letters across my chest represent, knowing what it represents to everyone in this clubhouse.”

(Photo: Bob Levey / Getty Images)