Astros Release Former AL MVP Abreu

The Astros have released first baseman Jose Abreu from their 25-man Major League roster, according to an announcement made by the organization on Friday.

Abreu, 37 years-of-age, was in the second year of a three-year, $58.5 million deal with the Astros and the team is still on the hook for more than half of the money, $30M, on the contract. He struggled mightily at the dish over 176 games for the Astros, hitting .217 with 20 homers and a .625 OPS.

Abreu agreed to be sent down to the Minor Leagues in late April, with general manager Dana Brown saying the decision was mutual between Abreu and the team, and that it would not be a long-term change, following a sluggish start in which he slashed .099/.156/.113 in 22 games. He reported to the team’s facility in West Palm Beach, Fla., and worked out for a couple of weeks before getting at-bats in the Florida Complex League and playing in two games at Triple-A Sugar Land.

“We need to get some production out of first base,” Brown said. “We’ll do whatever we have to do.”

The Astros remained optimistic that the tweaks and adjustments Abreu made with his swing would turn his season around, however, unfortunately, it did not happen. He slashed .167/.186/.333 with two long balls in 13 games after rejoining the Astros on May 27. Abreu was 0-for-7 in two games against the San Francisco Giants last weekend, and with the Astros going on a downward spiral in the AL West standings, they could not afford to keep him in the mix.

Abreu joined an already stacked Astros roster in free agency in November 2022 following a decorated run with the Chicago White Sox, during which he earned three All-Star nods (2014, 2018, 2019) and three-time Silver Slugger (2014, 2018, 2020), and was named American League Rookie of the Year (2014) and Most Valuable Player (2020).

The White Sox initially signed the slugger to a six-year, $68 million deal as an international free agent after he defected from his homeland, Cuba, in 2013.

Abreu made a seismic impact for the White Sox upon his arrival in the Majors in 2014 as a rookie, hitting .317 with 36 homers, 107 RBIs and a .964 OPS. He hit .317 with 19 home runs, a Major League-leading 60 RBIs and a .987 OPS over 60 games in his MVP season in 2020.

Abreu reached the 30-home run mark five times and produced 100-plus RBIs six times during his tenure with the ‘South Siders’, slashing .292/.354/.506 over 1,270 games with the team. However, he fell off a cliff, seemingly overnight and was unable to maintain his performance after joining the Astros, careening to a .680 OPS in 2023 and then a subpar .361 in 2024.

The Astros are currently seven games below .500, 31-38, and find themselves mired in third place in a dismally bad AL West.