{"id":228312,"date":"2020-09-30T08:41:34","date_gmt":"2020-09-30T12:41:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/?p=228312"},"modified":"2020-09-30T08:41:34","modified_gmt":"2020-09-30T12:41:34","slug":"mvpito-the-reasons-for-a-trend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/sports\/baseball\/mvpito-the-reasons-for-a-trend\/","title":{"rendered":"#MVPito: the reasons for a trend"},"content":{"rendered":"

The last time a player led the American League in hits, extra-bases, RBIs, slugging and total bases, Pete Rose was more than 1,000 hits short of catching Ty Cobb in the all-time lead, Rickey Henderson hadn\u2019t started his long-run career of 1,406 stolen bases, and Minnie Mi\u00f1oso had another season to play in the Majors, although he was already 52 years old.<\/span><\/p>\n

By the way, the last time a player led the American League in hits, extra-bases, RBIs, slugging and total bases, neither Jos\u00e9 Abreu (Mal Tiempo, 1987) nor any of the Cubans who are in the Major Leagues today were born.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps this should not surprise us, since we\u2019re faced with an absolutely unusual event, within the reach of very few mortals. So much so that only four men have achieved it in the centennial history of the young circuit.<\/span><\/p>\n

Four players since 1901?! Well yes, only four, although wait, we\u2019re making a mistake; that short list has grown only a few hours ago and now has a fifth member.<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019re talking precisely about Cienfuegos-born Jos\u00e9 Abreu, one of the most consistent hitters in professional baseball in the United States and one of the most responsible for the return to the postseason\u201412 years later\u2014of the Chicago White Sox.<\/span><\/p>\n

Impressed? I would be, but if you\u2019re not completely convinced of the magnitude of \u201cPito\u2019s\u201d performance, I invite you to find out all the details of the historic campaign of the driving force behind his team and a serious <\/span>candidate<\/span><\/a> for the MVP award that the Baseball Writers\u2019 Association of America gives.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c#MVPito !, #MVPito !, #MVPito!\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

When Jos\u00e9 Abreu signed back with the Chicago White Sox last winter, he was confident that the squad would sooner or later reverse its streak of seven consecutive losing seasons, including three of more than 95 losses.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone knows we have a talented group of players and I want to help guide them and together turn the franchise into a champion team,\u201d <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> the Cuban after signing a three-year, $50 million contract in November 2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perhaps many didn\u2019t understand the move of Abreu, who was perfectly able to explore in free agency and land in a squad with a real chance of being a contender in the Majors, thus meeting the important goal of playing his first postseason.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

#MVPito<\/a>! #MVPito<\/a>! #MVPito<\/a>! pic.twitter.com\/GWcwAznKHJ<\/a><\/p>\n

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) September 27, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n