Astros see enough, pull plug on Jose Abreu experiment after brutal stint

When the Houston Astros signed Jose Abreu ahead of the 2023 season, it felt as if the rich had gotten substantially richer. Houston won the World Series in 2022 and upgraded their weakest position from that season, first base, by signing a former MVP and a three-time All-Star.

From the moment Abreu stepped foot in Houston, things weren't what Astros fans expected. The 37-year-old struggled for most of his first season with the Astros, but redeemed himself with a strong postseason performance. That postseason gave Astros fans and the Houston organization hope that Abreu had figured it out and was going to have a strong final two years with the club. They couldn't have been more wrong.

Abreu's struggles were even worse this season than last, and he was so bad to the point that Houston sent him down to the minors. Even though the play had improved, it still wasn't close to acceptable. Now, the Astros have seen enough.

According to Chandler Rome of The Athletic, the Astros have released Abreu from his contract. Abreu is now owed more than $30 million, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Astros finally put an end to Jose Abreu tenure

Abreu was hitting under .100 with a .269 OPS before getting sent down. Houston felt as if he was ready to come back up, but the numbers showed otherwise. He hit .167 with a .519 OPS in 13 games after his recall.

While Abreu had been soaking up most of the starts at first base, Jon Singleton, a player who had hit at a roughly league-average level in Abreu's absence, had been spending more time on the bench. That dynamic made no sense for an Astros team trying to win. Thankfully, they came to their senses and let Abreu go.

Letting a player go when he still has another year and roughly $30 million on his contract can't be easy, but Abreu simply looks finished. As much as that might hurt to hear, that's what his play for really most of his Astros tenure has shown.

As for what Houston will do in the future, that remains to be seen. Singleton should get most of the starts at first base now, and depending on how he does and how the team is doing, the Astros might explore trade possibilities. Joey Loperfido is another option, but since Houston foolishly sent him down recently, as Rome points out, they can't bring him back yet unless someone is injured.

Abreu had some good moments last postseason, but for the most part, his Astros tenure was completely underwhelming. Their organization deserves a ton of credit for moving on as soon as they did.