Jose Abreu has been tearing it up for Chicago. (Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports)
CHICAGO — Jose Abreu continues to swing a hot bat for the Chicago White Sox, but he’s rapidly approaching his career high for games played in one season.
The Cuban-born rookie first baseman had only played in Cuba’s top professional league prior to this season, which features a 96-game season. After missing 14 games with an ankle injury, Abreu played his 85th game for the White Sox on Sunday in an 11-7 loss to the Houston Astros at U.S. Cellular Field.
As the games pile up, there is some uncertainty how the grind of baseball’s 162-game season will affect the 27-year-old slugger — who leads the majors with 29 homers. Abreu isn’t among those with concerns.
“I don’t really think it’s going to affect (me),” he said through an interpreter. “So far, we’ve played half of the season and here we play 162 games, but I just feel like we’ve just got to continue to work hard and stay mentally tough and continue to be a good person, so you can get the results that you want at the end of the season. But I don’t think the length is going to affect my performance or anything like that.”
It certainly hasn’t thus far. Abreu went 2-for-5 with an RBI single and extended his hitting streak to 11 games Sunday. He’s isn’t showing any signs of slowing up because of fatigue.
“I don’t know about 100 (games), but you get up to about 125-130, there might be some validity to that, playing that many games,” Ventura said. “But I think right now he’s so excited with the way things are going, that can carry guys through that period. You don’t know until he gets there and you see it, but he’s made a lot of adjustments along the way already.”
The only adjustment Ventura foresees in managing Abreu’s playing time the rest of the season might be to play him as the Sox’s designated hitter a little more often.
Otherwise, he’s content to keep running the big guy out there as his first baseman every day.
“You take care of him and give him a day (off) maybe here or there, but you’re watching everybody for that same (fatigue), whether they’ve been here a few years or this is (their) first time doing it,” Ventura said. “Everybody has their limit and you hope it’s kind of at that point where you can get them some rest to be fresh for the rest of it.”
