MLB All-Star Game: Jeter, top storylines from the first half

Jose?… You don’t say! White Sox rookie first baseman Jose Abreu is on pace to break several home run records by season’s end.     Who is Jose Abreu?  Well, he only has the most home runs in baseball entering the break. The White Sox rookie first baseman has hit 29 home runs in the first half of the season so far, third most before the All-Star break in franchise history behind Frank Thomas (32, 1994) and Jim Thome (30, 2006). With his 29^th home run on Saturday, Abreu reached 50 career extra-base hits in the second fewest games in baseball history.  Abreu reached that mark in 81 games.  Ted Williams hit that mark in 80 games in 1939.  Abreu is currently on pace to equal Albert Belle’s single season franchise home run record of 49 and possibly Mark McGuire’s single season rookie mark of the same total as well. The scarier part of Abreu’s sheer dominance at the plate was that he missed 14 games to an ankle injury. “Jose brings a lot as far as just an offense that’s different than we were last year,” said manager Robin Ventura.  “You still feel like you are able to score at any point in the game.  Last year, if we fell behind, there wasn’t necessarily the means to catch back up and score some runs.” Overall, Abreu is hitting .287/.338/.631 with (the aforementioned) 29 home runs and 73 RBI in 81 games.  Since coming off of the disabled list with an ankle injury on June 2, Abreu is hitting .313 with 14 homers and 31 RBI. Despite Abreu’s performance at the plate, the White Sox still find themselves below .500 entering the break.  They are 45-51 (10.5 GB first place Detroit) and in fourth place in the AL Central. If Abreu can continue hitting at his current pace in the second half of the season, the White Sox may just be worth watching in August and September, despite the fact that they probably won’t make any sort of playoff push.