Chicago White Sox's Abreu, Robert claim AL Player/Rookie of Month honors
It was quite an opening month of the season for the White Sox.
As a team, they went 19-9 in August while hitting 54 home runs, a franchise record for a one-month span.
Individually, Lucas Giolito threw a no-hitter against the Pirates on Aug. 25 and reigning batting champion Tim Anderson hit .329 while helping the Sox rise to first place in the AL Central.
Jose Abreu and Luis Robert also played major roles, and the duo was recognized before Wednesday night's game at Minnesota.
Abreu was named AL Player of the Month for July/August and Robert captured AL Rookie of the Month honors.
The abbreviated regular season opened on July 23.
While winning the third monthly honor of his career, Abreu hit .315/.359/.636 with 10 doubles, 12 home runs and 32 RBI over 35 games.
The White Sox's 33-year-old first baseman saved his best stretch of the month for the Cubs. In a three-game series at Wrigley Field Aug. 21-23, Abreu hit 6 homers - 4 of them in a row - and drove in 9 runs.
Extending his hitting streak to 16 with a single in the second inning Wednesday, Abreu entered the game tied for the AL lead with 32 RBI and tied for second with 12 home runs.
"I'm glad and thankful for all the people who voted for me for this award," Abreu said through a translator. "It means a lot. But for me, what is important and what matters is that I enjoy the game and am living in peace with myself. I'm doing the things that I know I can do to help this team, and the results are good out there.
"And I think we're in a very good spot to do good things this season. That's what matters for me, that's what's important. I'm not a person who likes individual accolades or that stuff."
Robert hit .298/.348/.612 with 8 doubles, 10 home runs, 24 RBI, 22 runs scored and 4 stolen bases over 33 games in July and August.
The 23-year-old center fielder leads major league baseball with an average exit velocity of 108.9 mph on home runs (minimum 10).
"I feel happy for winning that award," Robert said through a translator. "I feel the same as Abreu that this is special. But this is an award for the whole team and all the guys. Abreu, Eloy (Jimenez) and (Edwin) Encarnacion, because they worked with me and helped me accomplish all this during the last month."
Remembering Seaver:
Hall of Famer and three-time Cy Young Award winner Tom Seaver died Monday at the age of 75.
Toward the end of his career, Seaver pitched for the White Sox (1984-86) and was 33-28 with a 3.67 ERA.
"Tom Seaver joined the White Sox in 1984 and his class and character immediately impressed all who encountered him," Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. "Tom was respected by everyone in the game and that respect was so well deserved. He was the consummate professional in everything he did, and at the same time, he had a fantastic sense of humor that reverberated around the clubhouse.
"Tom was an artist on the mound, who loved and respected the game of baseball with an unmatched passion. Tom won his 300th game on August 4, 1985, appropriately in New York, and we were all so happy for him. While his time in Chicago was relatively brief given his long Hall of Fame career, the friendships and impressions he left have lasted a lifetime."