Turning slump into hot streak the latest act of Jose Abreu, the White Sox resident role model

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White Sox fans should by now be well acquainted with how the team views Jose Abreu.

The first baseman, in his fifth season on the South Side after coming to the major leagues from Cuba, has oft been described in recent seasons as a model for the White Sox fleet of talented young players who are supposed to one day make up the roster of a perennial contender.

Abreu could very well be a part of that group because of how highly the team thinks of a player who has been an incredibly consistent contributor both on and off the field. Whether hitting 25 homers and driving in 100 runs in each of his first four seasons in a White Sox uniform or taking on a mentorship role with young star Yoan Moncada, Abreu’s got a lot of value.

You can look to something new he does on a daily basis as an example for why these young players should be following his lead. But Abreu’s latest act has been transforming what was a months-long slump into a second-half surge that could turn the worst statistical season of his career into just another typically productive Abreu campaign.

On May 26, Abreu’s batting average was a season-best .319. In the 45 games that followed, he slashed .180/.230/.308 with four homers and 22 RBIs to close out the first half. It didn’t stop him from getting elected the American League’s starting first baseman in the All-Star Game, but it dragged his numbers to a place unfamiliar for a guy who slashed .301/.359/.524 with a combined 124 homers and 410 RBIs in his first four big league seasons.

The All-Star experience served as a nice reset of sorts, at least from a statistical perspective, for Abreu. He’s been excellent since the second half got started two and a half weeks ago in Seattle. In the first 17 games of the second half, he slashed .344/.425/.703 with six homers and 11 RBIs. He added another homer and three more RBIs in Tuesday night's loss to the New York Yankees.

Perhaps something like this was simply inevitable. Abreu’s had excellent second-half splits over the course of his career: a .316/.383/.543 slash line with 60 of his 143 career home runs in just shy of 300 games after the All-Star break. But it’s hard to discount the kind of work that makes the White Sox love him so much. His ability to work through the struggles and come out the other end as hot as he’s been all season is just another reason for these young guys to pay attention.

“Perseverance. Trust in yourself, knowing that you know what you’re doing,” manager Rick Renteria said when asked what Abreu’s recent work can show the young players. “Everybody goes through ups and downs over the course of the season. Most guys are pretty consistent, major league hitters usually minimize the extent and time. If it is prolonged, they ultimately still end up finding a way out and get themselves on good footing again. Obviously he’s been swinging the bat pretty well.

“Through the whole process, he keeps his emotions in check, understands what he’s doing. You very rarely see an outburst that show any level of strong frustration. He senses it and he feels it, but never an outward expression to the point where you go, ‘wow,’ put you back on your toes a little bit. He’s always maintained good composure. That comes with time and maturity and understanding who you are, what you can do. And he continues to push and drive himself to be the best he can be.”

The always humble Abreu doesn’t like to discuss himself in terms of a model for young players, happy to just go about his business and offer advice. That’s part of the reason the White Sox like him so much.

“First and foremost, you have to be glad with the opportunity this team has given me just to be around good people, my teammates who have supported me in my good and bad times,” Abreu said through a team translator Tuesday. “We’re here with a pretty good group of coaches, and they are here to help us with any need we have. Just being surrounded by good people, that’s what matters. If you’re around good people and you work hard, good things can happen and you have to believe in yourself.”

Abreu’s going to have to stay pretty hot over the season’s final couple months if he wants to match the great numbers from his first four years in the bigs. But whether or not he gets there isn’t as valuable to the young players watching as how he does it. And that’s why he could be sticking around on the South Side for quite a while.

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