In the end of April, the Astros announced that Jose Abreu agreed to be optioned to the Minor Leagues. In the first 22 games of the 2024 season, Jose Abreu was only hitting .099/.156/.113 with 3 RBI. Looking at those numbers, it’s so hard to believe that he used to win the MVP award. Well, it’s certainly a rough start for Abreu. Being optioned to the minors might be a good solution to help Abreu overcome the struggles.
While reading the news, I was just thinking about his performance and the performance of another Jose.
After slashing .304/.378/.446 with 15 home runs and 75 RBI in 2022, Jose Abreu inked a 3-year deal with the Astros in November 2022. In 2023, Abreu batted .237/.296/.383 with 18 home runs and 90 RBI over 141 games. Well, collecting 90 RBI wasn’t bad. However, Abreu’s OPS was below .700. At the beginning of the 2024 season, Abreu couldn’t contribute much to the Astros.
Jose Abreu hasn’t played well in the Astros uniform. Nonetheless, another Jose is doing well. Jose Altuve is still one of the most trustworthy hitters in the Astros lineup. So far this season, Altuve hits .313/.376/.489 with 7 home runs and 14 RBI over 43 games.
So, how does Jose Altuve’s performance mean for the Astros?
Firstly, he collects hits. So far, Altuve has 55 hits. In the Astros lineup, there are only 2 players who have at least 50 hits. The other one is Jeremy Pena, who now has 55 hits as well.
In addition, Altuve can hit long balls. By far this season, Jose Altuve has 7 home runs. At the same time, Yordan Alvarez already blasted 8 home runs. In the Astros lineup, Kyle Tucker now leads the team with 13 home runs.
Moreover, he can get on base. Altuve’s on-base percentage is .376 thus far. In the meantime, Kyle Tucker has an OBP over .400 and Jeremy Pena owns a .367 OPS. In the Astros lineup, they are the top 3 players that get on base frequently.
Finally, Altuve owns a .865 OPS now. There are 3 players who have an OPS over .800 in the Astros. Kyle Tucker now leads the Astros with an OPS of 1.000 and Jeremy Pena has a .813 OPS.
It’s been a tough season for the Astros. By far, they have 19 wins and 25 losses. The team is now the third in the AL West. The Astros won the AL West title in 2023 and now, this team just doesn’t look like a playoff contender. For the Astros, there are some problems now. A key thing is that Jose Abreu couldn’t contribute much to the team thus far this season. Nonetheless, the other Jose is still able to get his job done. Jose Altuve’s performance surely shows that he’s very consistent and the Astros truly rely on him. One Jose hasn’t hit well so far. Nevertheless, the other Jose doesn’t let the team down. By far, it’s still unknown when Jose Abreu will be back to the Astros lineup. Hence, in the short-term, Jose Altuve’s performance will be very important for the Astros. Furthermore, it will be interesting to see if the Astros can gradually be on the track to be a postseason contender.
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