NEW YORK — The White Sox aren’t worried that Jose Abreu has yet to tap into his power.
Not only has he hit well the past 17 games, but Abreu entered Sunday’s contest nearly on the same pace he was last season when he blasted 30 round-trippers for the White Sox.
Abreu, who has hit 71 career homers, only hit five homers in his team’s first 37 games in 2016. But Abreu — who is hitting at a .329/.400/.500 clip with 15 RBIs in his last 80 plate appearances — produced six homers in the team’s first 37 games last season.
Had it not been for a massive wall of wind in Arlington, Texas, on Tuesday, Abreu would have six homers.
“He was swinging the bat pretty good,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “Hit one that could have been a homer before the storm came in. He just has to continue to stay with it. We know what he can do. We don’t look at it like a guy is getting older and losing pop. People are pitching him different. I think once the lineup gets more consistent it’s going to happen.”
Perhaps of more concern is Abreu’s early struggles with runners in scoring position.
Through his first 54 plate appearances with RISP, Abreu hit .262/.370/.286 with no homers and 16 RBIs. In his first two seasons, Abreu hit .329/.449/.589 with 18 homers and 138 RBIs in 323 plate appearances.
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But even those figures have improved. Since April 26, Abreu was hitting .375/.467/.417 with 11 RBIs and five walks in 29 plate appearances with runners in scoring position entering Sunday's game against the Yankees.