Abreu grabs AL rookie honor for June
In his native Cuba, Jose Abreu put up some monster numbers during his 10-year run with Cienfuegos.
"In Cuba, first of all, I'm very grateful to Cuban baseball," Abreu said through a translator. "But in Cuba, we don't have that many awards. You never get that many awards. That probably why I look kind of cold when I get these awards here, because we're not used to that."
Abreu is barely halfway through his first major-league season, but the White Sox' 27-year-old first baseman is already piling up awards.
The latest came on Wednesday, when Abreu was voted American League Rookie of the Month for June after batting .313 with 10 home runs, 22 RBI and a .677 slugging percentage in 25 games.
Abreu also won AL Rookie and Player of the Month honors in April. Heading into Wednesday night's game against the Angels, he led the majors in slugging (.627) and was tied for first in homers (26) and RBI (67).
"First of all, I thank God and I'm very happy for the results," Abreu said. "I've just got to continue to work so we can continue to help the team, get where we want to get. To me, if the team doesn't do good, I'm not doing my work. I'm very team-oriented."
International signings:
The White Sox agreed to terms with four international free agents on Wednesday: 16-year-old catcher Jhoandro Alfaro and infielders Felix Mercedes, 17, Ricky Mota, 16, and Amado Nunez, 16.
Nunez, a 6-foot-2, 178-pound shortstop, is rated by Baseball America as the No. 26 International Prospect.
Alfaro, a switch-hitter, is ranked by MLB.com as the No. 28 International Prospect.
"I am very excited about the potential of these four players and our entire 2014 class," said Marco Paddy, the Sox' international operations director. "I have gotten to know each of these players and their families very well over the last year, and I have been very impressed by their abilities on the baseball diamond and their character as young men. Their futures are exciting."
Power outage:
Matt Davidson has been on a power tear at Class AAA Charlotte, and his 15 home runs rank second in the International League.
Current White Sox third baseman Conor Gillaspie has been batting over .300 all season, but he didn't hit his first homer until Game 2 of Tuesday night's doubleheader against the Angels.
Third base is typically a power position, but manager Robin Ventura doesn't want Gillaspie swinging for the fences.
"He just has a swing that is a line-drive swing," Ventura said. "I don't think he's changing anything; we didn't tell him to change anything. He's a contact, line-drive hitter. He does have the ability to hit a few home runs, he did last year (13). When he hits it good, it's going to go."