I’ve been saying he needs a real chance. I think he would hit .235-250 with 20 plus dongs and an ops of 700-800 if given a real chance.
Maybe Abreu needs to shave his head, chop that troll from sprouting, throw a moon rock of chaw in his mouth, eat a barrel of avocados (assortment of mixed nuts), start throwing more weight around at the facilities, and throw back shots of espresso between innings.... (thats how I'd gain confidence in a competitive/top-paid position in that particular situation) (does anyone have a list/link of the current banned-substances/PED list? just curious...)
Is he the worst position player right now in baseball? Maybe. This whole team is just ****ed. Abreu will probably eventually come around, but he's so bad at the moment that you can't help but wonder if maybe he's really done this time. I mean he always starts out slow, but this seems different.
https://theathletic.com/5411804/2024/04/13/astros-jose-abreu-benched/ Abreu has three singles and 13 strikeouts in his first 37 at-bats of the season. None of his hits has left the infield. His last one, hit at Kauffman Stadium, should have been scored as an error on Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. Abreu has a 16 percent hard-hit rate, is whiffing at a 38.3 percent clip and has averaged an 85.1 percent exit velocity on the 25 balls he’s put in play. He averaged an 89 mph exit velocity last season — down 2 mph from his career average — inviting wonder about whether age has sapped his bat speed. “I think he’s got some timing issues,” Astros general manager Dana Brown told the team’s flagship radio station this week. “I thought about the bat speed thing, but when I saw him launching balls in the seats, the bat speed looked fine from a scouting eye perspective. I think it’s more timing and maybe thinking too much about offspeed and maybe it looks like he’s slowing the bat down because he’s worried about the offspeed pitch and he’s late on the fastball.” Abreu is 0-for-12 with six strikeouts against breaking pitches this season. He has a 47.1 percent whiff rate against sliders after swinging-and-missing at sliders 31.8 percent of the time last season. Abreu is also worth minus-2 defensive runs saved at first base, according to Sports Info Solutions, inviting wonder about what value he is bringing to this reeling team. “You flip over the back of his baseball card and he’s going to show up, at some point,” Brown said, echoing the same trite sentiment so many in this organization have shared.
If Loperfino isn’t called up by this weekend I’m losing all faith in this front office. .320 BA 1.270 OPS 9hr in 50 AB’s Not sure what else he needs to do.
I remember when Hunter Brown wondered what more he needed to do to reach the Astros. Back when he was in AAA. Now look at that buffoon. Totally unrelated to Loperfido though hopefully. Lol.
And 36% K rate. He also has a completely unsustainable 75% HR/FB rate and only hits to the opposite field 9.7% of the time. To me those numbers point to legitimate MLB pitchers being able to get him out consistently. I am excited, but for the future not the present. He still has things to work on.
Looking at the AAA numbers, Cabbage is doing everything he needs to except still striking out 33% of the time. He has a wRC+ of 167 which adjusts for the ballparks, and walks more than twice as often as Joey while K'ing slightly less often. If Abreu or Singleton were suddenly no longer on the roster, I think I would bring up Cabbage and let Loperfido keep working in AAA. But I still expect Joey to be better over the next 5 years. FWIW: Leon is also making a case for a promotion.
Raking in the minors doesn't necessarily mean he is ready for the majors. That is something the minor league coach should know. Lets not let need dictate his progression.
Altuve has as many homers as Abreu has hits (5) Altuve has 8 doubles…..26 hits overall, leading the majors. Great start to the season
No he didn't 2014: A ball = 21.2%, A+ = 25.3% 2015: AA = 25.0%, AAA = 28.5% 2016: AAA = 23 8% Then MLB.
I don't get to watch the space cowboys, so how does Loperfido hit 10 homeruns but still have a GO/AO of 2.0+? That's a crazy stat. Is he just missing high or does he have swing path issues like JD before JD became JD. Can he not recognize breaking balls ala Pena before this season.
I'd like to be excited about Joey but someone striking out 40% of the time in AAA will get absolutely dominated by major league pitching. He isn't going to be any better than Abreu or Singleton, which is astonishingly bad.
A local little leaguer would be an improvement over Abreu right now. Singleton, maybe, maybe not. His increased playing time certainly suggests that the team realizes Abreu is toast and some action plan has to start. I'm pretty damn confident Singleton isn't that guy, but anything is better than Abreu now. And his K rate is bad, it's not quite that bad.
The Abreu issue reminds me of Eric Hosmer (except the age) Signed 8 yr / $144M deal 2018-2025. Ages 28-35. He was basically league average and mostly an everyday player for 4 2/3 seasons of the deal. In order to get rid of him, the Padres traded him, their #11 and #26 prospects and $44 M (94% of remaining salary- all but MLB min for next 3+ seasons) They got back Boston's #11 prospect. AND that's with Hosmer 32 and a legitimately average player ( 111 OPS+ at time of trade and 104, 132, 94, and 100 the other years if the deal) The Astros have 3 choices: 1) deal with it and let him stay on the roster for the remainder of his contract. 2) drop him like a hot potato but still pay him his money. 3) pay nearly all his salary and add prospects for another team to take him in exchange different but not better prospects
