Overlooked by others, Abreu has tremendous value with White Sox
The White Sox love Jose Abreu.
It doesn't appear like not many others feel the same way.
MLB Network ranked the game's Top 10 first basemen right before spring training opened last month, and names you'd expect to see were all on the list. Freddie Freeman. Max Muncy. Matt Olson. Paul Goldschmidt. Pete Alonso. Anthony Rizzo.
Abreu? Not a peep.
Not a mention of the Sox's veteran first baseman who led the American League with 123 RBI last year while hitting 30 or more home runs for the fourth time in six seasons.
In an interesting twist, Edwin Encarnacion did make the cut, ranking No. 10 on MLB Network's first basemen list.
Signed by the White Sox on Jan. 9 to a one-year, $12 million contract with a $12 million club option for 2021, Encarnacion is a proven slugger.
One of just four active players (Albert Pujols, Miguel Cabrera, Nelson Cruz) with 400 or more career homers and 1,000-plus RBI, the 37-year-old Encarnacion also has eight straight seasons with 30 or more home runs, the longest streak in the majors.
He's a great addition to the Sox's lineup, but Encarnacion has primarily been a designated hitter the last five years and that is going to be his main role this season.
Overlooked or not, Abreu is back with the White Sox after signing a three-year, $50 million contract in November.
On the free-agent market for nearly a month, the 33-year-old Abreu never doubted he'd return.
"The biggest lesson I had reinforced is that there are still people in this life who really take care and appreciate what you do," Abreu said through a translator. "Throughout this process, I was able to connect with (chairman) Jerry (Reinsdorf), (general manager) Rick Hahn, (vice president) Kenny (Williams) and (assistant GM) Jeremy (Haber) and they all showed me their appreciation for me. That was something I really appreciated. That was one of the reasons why we were able to work this out."
He put up big numbers and was a three-time all-star on his first contract with the White Sox. On the flip side, Abreu never played on a winning team the last six seasons.
He has a strong chance to accomplish that goal this year, and that's a major reason why Abreu wanted to come back to the Sox.
"We weren't born to lose, but we know that losing is part of the game," Abreu said. "In this process, we were aware of the cost that we had to (pay) to get to this point now. I think we learned a lot from all those losses, from all those years. I think all those losses are going to make us better for this year and for the future, too."
Abreu is going to get most of the innings at first base this season, but he'll also be used at DH at times.
Encarnacion can play first base, and the White Sox can also use catchers Yasmani Grandal and possibly Zack Collins at the position.
"There are a couple of different options there for (manager) Ricky (Renteria) depending on the matchups," Hahn said.