The Miami Marlins have a shot at José Abreu

The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that the Chicago White Sox are planning to part ways with long-time first baseman and team leader José Abreu. This is big news and gives the Miami Marlins an opening to pursue the slugger ourselves. I covered the possibility before and was under the impression that it was impossible. Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf was so loyal to Abreu, that he personally extended him the last time that he hit free agency, and said that he wanted them on the team until his career ended. Things have changed since…..

The Miami Marlins have a chance to add a middle of the order bat at first base in José Abreu.

The Miami Marlins badly need hitting improvements and first base is a major problem area. Garrett Cooper can’t be trusted to stay healthy and is a designated hitter for that reason. Despite an All-Star game nod this season, he finished the season with a .261/.337/.415 batting line. Lewin Diaz was our first baseman and disappointed significantly with a -0.4 WAR and a .169/.224/.288 batting line.  The NL East is the best division so we can’t sit idly by.

The Miami Marlins clearly need a first baseman, but is José Abreu the answer? Abreu batted .304/.378/.446 and produced a 4.2 WAR. The issue is that he hit only 15 home runs and drove in only 75 RBI in 601 AB. Considering that he’ll be 36 years old next season, you can see why the Chicago White Sox are hesitant in paying him significant money to keep playing for them next season.

José Abreu has a 92.2 Exit Velocity, so it does seem like he still has elite power. So what happened to him in 2022 then? Why did his power go down so much? Was it bad luck? Is he actually declining?

What does StatCast think about José Abreu and his power? It projected him for 17.7 home runs in 2022, saying that he should’ve hit a couple more. It also however never saw his power as elite and never really projected him to hit 30+.

So…. should the Miami Marlins sign him? I don’t think so. He’s too old and his power is questionable. If we can get him for a cheap 1 year deal then sure, otherwise we should get someone younger.