A fair and balanced soliloquy about Jose Abreu, by ron

[ron883]

Anybody change there opinions? Remember when I was ridiculed, but it turns out was totally right

[harkness99]

Like most of the team he has his head shoved up squarely between both a** cheeks atm.

[Jake]

He's getting very hard to watch. Slumping is one thing, even getting worse is one thing, but right now he has some elementary problems. It's not just that it feels like he's being pitched very consistently and predictably inside, the numbers bear it out as well. Nobody sees as many inside fastballs in the league as Jose. But he can't lay off of them and he can't hit them hard. I'd like to see him at least look like he has a different strategy. Go up there looking for inside heat and pound it...or, if he just can't do that, then try to go up there refusing to swing at anything that looks to him like it's on the inside third. Right now it looks like he's up there trying to be able to cover any kind of pitch, but he's only seeing one kind of pitch and he can't handle that one.

[harkness99]

Over the past two weeks, Abreu is hitting .308/.373/.462. As I said in this post, his problem has not been swinging at the offspeed low and away, it was always not swinging enough at pitches in the zone. Over the last two weeks he's still swinging at balls, but now he's swinging a lot more at strikes. After swinging at just 63% of strikes after the first few weeks, he's swung at nearly 80% of strikes over the past two weeks (numbers similar to his 2014 season), with great success. Abreu is successful when he swings the bat more often. You can live with him not laying off the pitches low and away as long as he's swinging at the good pitches to hit, which is what has happened during his current hot stretch. He currently has a career-high walk rate and a career-low strikeout rate, so he'll be fine. Keep swinging, Jose.

 

Uhh I'm not sure were watching the same guy.

 

You can tell he has zero confidence up there... he is a panicking man flailing desperately at any and every pitch he sees.

 

[Jose Abreu]

Anybody change there opinions? Remember when I was ridiculed, but it turns out was totally right

Yes, you were totally right! When you said Abreu will put up his worst season statistically in 2016, you were right. Thanks for teaching me that the 2016 season ended. Oh well, at least we made the playoffs!

[Panerista]

Anybody change there opinions? Remember when I was ridiculed, but it turns out was totally right

This attitude gets you nowhere.

[Lillian]

He's getting very hard to watch. Slumping is one thing, even getting worse is one thing, but right now he has some elementary problems. It's not just that it feels like he's being pitched very consistently and predictably inside, the numbers bear it out as well. Nobody sees as many inside fastballs in the league as Jose. But he can't lay off of them and he can't hit them hard. I'd like to see him at least look like he has a different strategy. Go up there looking for inside heat and pound it...or, if he just can't do that, then try to go up there refusing to swing at anything that looks to him like it's on the inside third. Right now it looks like he's up there trying to be able to cover any kind of pitch, but he's only seeing one kind of pitch and he can't handle that one.

 

There are at least 3 ways to counter the strategy of being pitched inside:

1) He can get his bat out in front early enough to pull the inside pitches, before they get in too deep. However, that would require him to swing too early, and also likely

result in a lot of pitches pulled foul.

 

2) Take those inside pitches for balls

 

3) Back a little off of the plate and take the strikes, which he could still reach, the other way. He has enough power to hit to the opposite field, with authority.

Any pitches that look like they are even close to coming inside on him, he could take with confidence, knowing that they were definitely inside, given how far he is from the plate.

If they throw him breaking balls "away," many will actually break across the plate for strikes, given that he is standing off the plate. He would need to recognize them as strikes, and make some contact. If he is going to be suckered into swinging at balls breaking away, and out of the zone, as he has so often done, standing off the plate won't work for him. However, if he can lay off those low and away breaking balls, this tactic could effectively counter the strategy of being pitched inside.

If there is indeed something wrong with his right wrist, as someone here has suggested, going the other way, and not rolling his wrist over, could help overcome that.

The "hands before the barrel of the bat" swing takes a lot of stress off of the top hand.

 

One thing is apparent; he can't continue to do what he is currently doing. He must make some adjustments. I think that he will figure it out, and I hope that he does so very soon.

Edited May 22, 2016 by Lillian

[harkness99]

There are at least 3 ways to counter the strategy of being pitched inside:

1) He can get his bat out in front early enough to pull the inside pitches, before they get in too deep. However, that would require him to swing too early, and also likely

result in a lot of pitches pulled foul.

 

2) Take those inside pitches for balls

 

3) Back a little off of the plate and take the strikes, which he could still reach, the other way. He has enough power to hit to the opposite field, with authority.

Any pitches that look like they are even close to coming inside on him, he could take with confidence, knowing that they were definitely inside, given how far he is from the plate.

If they throw him breaking balls "away," many will actually break across the plate for strikes, given that he is standing off the plate. He would need to recognize them as strikes, and make some contact. If he is going to be suckered into swinging at balls breaking away, and out of the zone, as he has so often done, standing off the plate won't work for him. However, if he can lay off those low and away breaking balls, this tactic could effectively counter the strategy of being pitched inside.

If there is indeed something wrong with his right wrist, as someone here has suggested, going the other way, and not rolling his wrist over, could help overcome that.

The "hands before the barrel of the bat" swing takes a lot of stress off of the top hand.

 

One thing is apparent; he can't continue to do what he is currently doing. He must make some adjustments. I think that he will figure it out, and I hope that he does so very soon.

 

This is a very good post (I like a lot of your posts)

 

He does look like he really doesn't have a plan up there - if he does its falling apart fast.

 

If he is going to stand that close to the plate he needs to not swing at those pitches.

[Lillian]

Thank you "Harkness". That is very kind of you.

[OmarComing25]

Anybody change there opinions? Remember when I was ridiculed, but it turns out was totally right

You're being ridiculed because you're being a troll. Despite supposedly being a Sox fan, you pretty much openly admitted to hoping a Sox player does poorly just so you can tell a bunch of strangers on the Internet that you were right. Keep fighting the good fight though.

Edited May 22, 2016 by OmarComing25

[OmarComing25]

Uhh I'm not sure were watching the same guy.

 

You can tell he has zero confidence up there... he is a panicking man flailing desperately at any and every pitch he sees.

I wrote that several weeks ago, and it's still true. In the last two weeks Abreu stopped swinging at strikes again, it's still the biggest issue IMO.

[harkness99]

Can't believe how bad he has been....

 

 

If he doesn't get his head out of his a** we got no chance.

[BigHurt3515]

He needs to stop swinging at the inside pitch until they get it in the strike zone

[black jack]

Seems like he's always up with runners on.

IMO, that's made the slump look a lot worse than it probably is.

That being said, his at bats are UGLY.

[RockRaines]

Slumps suck. Fly his family to the states. Maybe it will energize him.

[BlackSox13]

If he doesn't get his head out of his a** we got no chance.

This really makes no sense. The Sox have no chance because Abreu is struggling and yet the Sox are still in first place and 8 games over .500 despite Abreu's struggles.

[caulfield12]

It probably makes as much sense as thinking the White Sox can just magically pull strings with the US and Cuban governments to reunite him with his family...and that doing so will cure him of his slump.

[Panerista]

This really makes no sense. The Sox have no chance because Abreu is struggling and yet the Sox are still in first place and 8 games over .500 despite Abreu's struggles.

We have had some excellent fortune so far this season to cover up Abreu struggling, but most of us agree there will be a time when we need him to hit and help carry the rest of the team.

[Y2Jimmy0]

We have had some excellent fortune so far this season to cover up Abreu struggling, but most of us agree there will be a time when we need him to hit and help carry the rest of the team.

 

 

I would just leave him in the 2 hole honestly. Let him see fastballs and try to find his way out of it.

[Panerista]

I would just leave him in the 2 hole honestly. Let him see fastballs and try to find his way out of it.

2 hole sees too many at bats to leave a struggling player there, IMHO. Your 2 hole should be your best or second best hitter. The only player who sees more at-bats is the leadoff man but the leadoff man has one less at bat with men on base. I love Abreu, but if he's going to struggle, he needs to be 6 in the lineup. You can't let him struggle in the 2 hole.

[harkness99]

This really makes no sense. The Sox have no chance because Abreu is struggling and yet the Sox are still in first place and 8 games over .500 despite Abreu's struggles.

 

It makes every bit of sense... we struggle to score runs even when Abreu is decent. He has struggled throughout the year - but especially bad lately.

 

If he is going to be bad we are really going to have trouble scoring.

 

I guess you missed that KC series where we lost 2/3 games and scored 5 runs.

Edited May 24, 2016 by harkness

[shago]

Hats for bats ..... someone wake-up Jobu

[lasttriptotulsa]

2 hole sees too many at bats to leave a struggling player there, IMHO. Your 2 hole should be your best or second best hitter. The only player who sees more at-bats is the leadoff man but the leadoff man has one less at bat with men on base. I love Abreu, but if he's going to struggle, he needs to be 6 in the lineup. You can't let him struggle in the 2 hole.

 

The difference between the 2 spot and the 6 spot in the lineup amounts to about two extra plate appearances a week. Not that big of a difference. I'd rather see them give him the vote of confidence and leave him up higher in the lineup. He's too good of a hitter for this slump to last too long.

 

[SI1020]

Whatever happened to the quaint pre saber era idea that your #2 hitter should be good at putting bat on ball and bad at striking out?

[Y2Jimmy0]

2 hole sees too many at bats to leave a struggling player there, IMHO. Your 2 hole should be your best or second best hitter. The only player who sees more at-bats is the leadoff man but the leadoff man has one less at bat with men on base. I love Abreu, but if he's going to struggle, he needs to be 6 in the lineup. You can't let him struggle in the 2 hole.

 

 

I agree but if Abreu isn't that player, this team isn't going anywhere anyways.