So...look. Jose Abreu will probably not be playing for the White Sox next year. This is the last year of his contract, he's fulfilled a full tenure in Chicago, and I do not blame him if he wants to play for a competitive team in 2020.
But...let's at least look at this guy's career as a White Sox, because I honestly think he's one of the most underrated team anchors in the game.
So, here's a fun stat. 2018 was the only season where Abreu didn't hit over 100 RBIs, thanks to an injury. Every other year of his career, he's exceeded 100. This year, he has 119. Not only is this a career high for him, but it's the most in baseball right now. This is also his fourth 30+ home run season, as he's currently got 33. He leads the White Sox in home runs, RBIs, hits and total bases.
For shits and giggles, let's add his Cuban numbers to his tally. You do that, he's got career numbers of 357 home runs, 1909 hits, 1190 RBIs and a career .313 average. Even crazier, he didn't have a 100-RBI season until he came to the US. He had a 99-RBI year, and 3 more 30-homer years, which is even crazier when you realize there are shorter seasons in the Cuban leagues.
So, to this point, he has over 350 home runs, nearly 2000 hits, and he's really only ended the first phase of his US career. I know international totals only count toward career milestones if your name is Ichiro Suzuki, but...Abreu is something special. He's made things work in Cuba, and in the US, and he's just as elite as he was when he entered the league.
I don't worry too much about the Sox without Abreu. They have Anderson, Moncada, Jimenez and Garcia, so...that's still a good enough core, even though we're still probably looking at a third-or-fourth place team next year.
Coming Tomorrow- Another one-team lifer, but he's having slightly better playoff luck right now.
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