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Jose Abreu and Chicago White Sox Agree to 3 Year $50M Deal

Introduction

Jose Abreu and Chicago White Sox Agree to 3 Year $50M Deal

The Chicago White Sox are truly demonstrating their desire to invest in a better on-the-field product in order to become more competitive and create a winning culture on the south side of the city. Today they announced they have agreed to terms on a 3-year, $50 million contract extension for their big slugger, first baseman, and occasionally their designated hitter, Jose Abreu.

In the six seasons playing with the Chicago White Sox, Abreu has been named to the American League All Star Team in three of those years. In 2019 the Cuban born superstar led the AL in runs batted in with an incredible 123 RBI’s. He hit a respectable .284 to go along with his 33 loud home runs.

Reportedly Abreu signed a 1-year deal $17.8 million qualifying offer in order to forego free agency and ensure himself that he would remain in Chicago with Rickey Renteria and the White Sox. The White Sox wanted to demonstrate to their most valuable player their commitment to him and the organization as a whole. Teams like the Philadelphia Phillies just recently did this by throwing Bryce Harper over $300 million in hopes of bringing World Series titles back to the city of brotherly love.

Other Big Contracts Extended

Just a few days ago the White Sox signed all star switch hitting catcher, Yasmani Grandal, to a monster 4-year, $73 million agreement. Over the past decade or so, the White Sox have usually only provided one big name player such as Chris Sale a large contract to try and fill the seats without surrounding them with the talent it takes to win in today’s Major League Baseball environment.

The Breakdown of Abreu’s Contract Extension

The new agreement includes a $5 million signing bonus in addition to his 2020 salary of $11 million. Then his contract ramps up to $16 million for the 2021 MLB season. Then Abreu is scheduled to receive $18 million in 2022. The stipulations of his deal blankets the big guy with the security of a full no trade clause this upcoming year as well as a limited no trade clause the following MLB season. The Chicago White Sox are deferring $4 million of his 2022 salary in equivalent installments in each July from 2023 through 2026.

Incentives Involved

Both Jose Abreu and Yasmani Grandal have incentives to hit which would richly reward them. The goals for these incentives include AL MVP, World Series MVP, League Championship Series MVP, All Star Team selection, Gold Glove Award winner, and Silver Slugger Award winner. The payouts range for an additional $15,000.00 to $100,000.00. Although these are hard to accomplish achievements the Chicago White Sox are willing to spend the money in attempt to once again bring a winning team back to the south side of Chicago.

Abreu's Career Regular Season Batting Statistics

Year Age Tm Lg G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
2014 27 CHW AL 145 622 556 80 176 35 2 36 107 3 1 51 131 0.317 0.383 0.581 0.964 173 323 14 11 0 4 15 *3D AS,MVP-4,RoY-1,SS
2015 28 CHW AL 154 668 613 88 178 34 3 30 101 0 0 39 140 0.29 0.347 0.502 0.85 135 308 16 15 0 1 11 *3D MVP-21
2016 29 CHW AL 159 695 624 67 183 32 1 25 100 0 2 47 125 0.293 0.353 0.468 0.82 124 292 21 15 0 9 7 *3/D  
2017 30 CHW AL 156 675 621 95 189 43 6 33 102 3 0 35 119 0.304 0.354 0.552 0.906 141 343 21 15 0 4 6 *3D MVP-14
2018 31 CHW AL 128 553 499 68 132 36 1 22 78 2 0 37 109 0.265 0.325 0.473 0.798 117 236 14 11 0 6 7 *3D AS,SS
2019 32 CHW AL 159 693 634 85 180 38 1 33 123 2 2 36 152 0.284 0.33 0.503 0.834 119 319 24 13 0 10 4 *3D AS,MVP-19
6 Yrs       901 3906 3547 483 1038 218 14 179 611 10 5 245 776 0.293 0.349 0.513 0.862 134 1821 110 80 0 34 50    
162 Game Avg.       162 702 638 87 187 39 3 32 110 2 1 44 140 0.293 0.349 0.513 0.862 134 327 20 14 0 6 9    

Career Regular Season Fielding Statistics

Year Age Tm Pos Lg G GS CG Inn Ch PO A E DP Fld% Rtot Rdrs Rtot/yr Rdrs/yr RF/9 RF/G lgFld% lgRF9 lgRFG Awards
2014 27 CHW 1B AL 109 109 105 957.1 1045 970 69 6 105 0.994 -2 -10 -3 -13 9.77 9.53 0.992 8.97 8.94 AS,MVP-4,RoY-1,SS
2014 27 CHW DH AL 35 35                                   AS,MVP-4,RoY-1,SS
2015 28 CHW 1B AL 115 115 108 1017 1023 952 60 11 100 0.989 2 1 2 1 8.96 8.8 0.994 9.1 9.03 MVP-21
2015 28 CHW DH AL 39 39                                   MVP-21
2016 29 CHW 1B AL 152 152 150 1355.2 1337 1243 84 10 131 0.993 -1 -5 -1 -4 8.81 8.73 0.994 8.97 8.87  
2016 29 CHW DH AL 7 7                                    
2017 30 CHW 1B AL 139 138 130 1197 1221 1135 78 8 130 0.993 3 0 3 0 9.12 8.73 0.993 8.64 8.55 MVP-14
2017 30 CHW DH AL 18 18                                   MVP-14
2018 31 CHW 1B AL 114 114 112 999.2 984 903 73 8 81 0.992 -1 -4 -1 -5 8.79 8.56 0.993 8.51 8.43 AS,SS
2018 31 CHW DH AL 13 13                                   AS,SS
2019 32 CHW 1B AL 125 125 123 1103.2 1094 1012 74 8 128 0.993 0 -4 0 -4 8.86 8.69 0.993 8.33 8.27 AS, MVP-17
2019 32 CHW DH AL 34 34                                   AS,MVP-19
6 Seasons     1B   754 753 728 6630.1 6704 6215 438 51 675 0.992 0 -22 0 -3 9.03 8.82 0.993 8.75 8.68  
6 Seasons     DH   146 146                                    
6 Seasons     TOT   754 753 728 6630.1 6704 6215 438 51 675 0.992 0 -22 0 -3 9.03 8.82 0.993 8.75 8.68  

Media Statements

"This is a dream come true for me and my family," Abreu stated. "To the fans, I told you I would come back. I never doubted it. Everybody knows the group of talented players that we have, and I want to help guide them and together make the Chicago White Sox a championship team."

"I always look at [Derek] Jeter's story and I look at Mariano [Rivera]'s story, who played their whole career with one team. I haven't been here that many years, but I want it to be that way for me, with the Chicago White Sox. That's why I say if they don't sign me, I'll sign myself. I'll play for free," Abreu explained.

"From the moment he stepped into the major leagues, Jose Abreu has been a leader on the field and in the clubhouse," says the Chicago White Sox general manager Rick Hahn. "He has consistently delivered run production at a historic pace, and with each passing season, his leadership role within our clubhouse -- with both American-born and Latin-American players -- has repeatedly grown. It's certainly no surprise that both Jose and the White Sox were comfortable with a multiyear commitment moving forward."

Sources:

“Jose Abreu agrees to 3-year, $50 million contract with White Sox”, espn.com, November 22, 2019.

“Jose Abreu”, baseball-reference.com, November 22, 2019.

Written by: David Green