Jose Abreu pushes hitting streak to 19 games

Jose Abreu has been nothing short of incredible in his first big league season, technically his rookie season, for the Chicago White Sox.

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The Cuban import saw to it that his power transferred to MLB action immediately. He will enter the month of August with at least 31 home runs. With that number alone Abreu has far exceeded expectations and is starting to make his six-year, $68 million deal look like it will be a huge bargain in the long run.

What has been even more impressive, and perhaps more unexpected, has been Abreu’s ability to hit for average and get on base. Entering Wednesday night’s action Abreu was slashing .299/.349/.632 to go along with his 31 home runs and his 83 RBI. I would be remiss, by the way, if I did not at least mention that Abreu also has one stolen base on the year.

Helping Abreu as he continues to present such an imposing, all-around threat on offense is his current 19 game hitting streak. He pushed it to that mark with a hit on Wednesday night against the Detroit Tigers.

If Abreu can continue to keep his average around the .300 mark as he pushes 45 home runs on the season, he will be one of the best hitters in all of baseball period, and not just one of the best power hitters.

There are some who believe that we are witnessing a bit of a change in baseball. With the uncertainty that surrounds young pitchers, whether in terms of effectiveness or health, teams are thought to value young hitters more. That the White Sox got this type of bat locked up for six years as a free agent is a boon and a key building block for them for years to come.

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