José Abreu going on the defensive at first base as he replaces Astros staple Yuli Gurriel
Working on his defense at first base has become a daily ritual for Astros newcomer José Abreu in spring training as he replaces Yuli Gurriel, whose work in the field was elite.WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — His predecessor made scooping throws and saving outs seem easy, so two hours before his second Grapefruit League appearance, José Abreu tried to mimic him. He stood at first base and stared toward shortstop.
“Yuli, as we all know, has always been one of the great ones in doing that,” Abreu said Wednesday through an interpreter. “I have the utmost respect for him. I think, for me, I want to try to continue doing it and try to be near the top at that.” “He knows it’s important here. Not saying he’s never taken it serious, but he cares about it and he knows it’s a big part of our culture,” Espada said. “ … So far, he’s been open to ideas and open to suggestions. His work ethic is just as as people spoke about.”
Abreu’s foremost responsibility is to make Houston’s lineup the deepest in baseball. Delivering at least an average defensive season is imperative, too. At full health, Framber Valdez and Lance McCullers Jr. will slot atop the rotation. Valdez led the sport with a 66.5 percent groundball rate last season. McCullers, in a far smaller sample size, generated grounders 50 percent of the time.
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