The Houston Astros are finalizing a deal with former White Sox slugger Jose Abreu.
The deal, once finalized, is expected to be three years long, reports Bob Nightengale.
Abreu, 35, has spent his entire career with the White Sox. He was an All-Star and Rookie of the Year in 2014 when he debuted as a 27-year-old. He was named an All-Star again in 2018 and 2019. He was the American League MVP during the abbreviated 2020 season.
Abreu has been one of the best sluggers in baseball since 2014. He averages over 25 home runs per season and couples that with a career batting average of .292.
Now he’ll take his talents down to Houston, where the righty is sure to take advantage of the short wall in left field.
The Mets weren’t necessarily “in” on Abreu this offseason but it does take away the top designated hitter on the FA market. Abreu has been consistently good against righties and lefties but has an OPS 80 points higher against lefties. One of New York’s main struggles last season was power against left-handers.
Three years for a DH might be too much for the Mets to invest in a 35-year-old and without contract details it’s hard to speculate if the Mets would’ve wanted to match the Astros price point.
The Mets did bring back Daniel Vogelbach on a one-year, $1.5 million contract for 2023 and want a righty platoon bat to complement him rather than an everyday DH.
With Vogelbach on the roster, it’s likely the Mets didn’t want another player without positional versatility on the bench. Buck Showalter‘s bench last season was prided on the fact they had multiple players that can play multiple positions.
The durability of Pete Alonso at first base also had to do with the choice to not bring in another first baseman like Abreu. Too many cooks in the kitchen as one could say.
The fit seemed to make sense but they’ll likely lean on an internal option for the DH role with bigger holes to fill on the field.
