Houston Astros Abreu was signed as an amateur
free agent by the
Houston Astros on August 21, 1990. He was the Astros Minor League Player of the Year in 1996 and made his Major League debut on September 1, 1996, against the
Pittsburgh Pirates. He was announced as a pinch hitter but did not get to bat because he was subsequently pinch hit for by
Mike Simms. He had his first official at-bat the following day against the
St. Louis Cardinals when he flied out to left field as a pinch hitter in the top of the sixth inning. After a few more appearances as a pinch hitter or late inning defensive replacement, he made his first start in left field against the
Colorado Rockies on September 6, going hitless in four at-bats with two strikeouts. Abreu's first Major League hit was a single to right field as a pinch hitter against
Bobby Jones of the
New York Mets on September 24. He finished his first season with five hits in 22 at-bats. He played in 59 games for the Astros in 1997, hitting .250 with three home runs and 26 RBI. Left unprotected in the
1997 MLB Expansion Draft when the Astros decided to keep fellow
Venezuelan
outfielder Richard Hidalgo, Abreu was selected by the then
Tampa Bay Devil Rays, only to be dealt hours later to the Phillies for
shortstop Kevin Stocker, a trade regarded among the worst in MLB history.
Philadelphia Phillies 1998–2003 seasons In 1998, his first season with the Phillies, Abreu led the team with a .312
batting average and collected 17
home runs, 74
RBI, and 19
stolen bases in 151 games, with 271
putouts and 17
assists in right field. Abreu hit the first home run at
Citizens Bank Park on Opening Day, April 12, 2004. He finished the season with a .301 average, 30 home runs, and 105 RBI, and ranked among the National League top five in five offensive categories:
runs (fourth, 118) -- the third time in six years that he scored 118 runs,
doubles (fourth, 47), stolen bases (third, 40—a career high),
walks (second, 127—a career high) and
on-base percentage (fifth, .428). Abreu became the first player in major league history to record 30 home runs, 40 doubles, 40 stolen bases, and 100 walks in a single season. He also led the Major Leagues in pitches-per-plate-appearance (4.32) and number of pitches seen (3,077), was eighth-highest in the league in total bases (312), and posted the league's tenth-best
OPS (.971). He also led the NL for the month in slugging average (.792), on-base percentage (.535), and walks (30) and was tied for the league lead with 30 RBI. He became the first player in Major League history to hit at least one home run in nine out of ten team games. He was voted a starter in the NL outfield for the All-Star Game, finishing second in fan voting, behind
St. Louis Cardinals outfielder
Jim Edmonds. Prior to the All-Star Game at
Comerica Park in Detroit, Abreu won the
Home Run Derby as he set records with 24 home runs in a single round (since broken by
Josh Hamilton in 2008), and 41 overall, topping
Miguel Tejada's previous marks of 15 and 27 set one year earlier. Abreu's longest homer was measured at 517 feet, the third longest in Derby history.
New York Yankees 2006 season in 2006 On July 30, 2006, Abreu was traded along with
Cory Lidle to the
New York Yankees for minor league shortstop
C. J. Henry (a 2005 first-round draft pick), left-hander
Matt Smith (a seven-year minor league veteran), catcher Jesus Sanchez, and right-hander
Carlos Monasterios—all low-level prospects in the Yankee organization.
Philadelphia Daily News columnist Bill Conlin called the trade "the Great Gillick Giveaway" and declared it "an unvarnished disaster." The Phillies actually improved after the Abreu trade and made a run for the National League wild card, only to be eliminated on the second to last day of the season. Abreu fit well into the Yankees lineup. He batted .297 with 15 home runs and 107 RBI in the 2006 season. and led the AL in percentage of pitches taken (66.2), and in walks per plate appearance (.181), third in
batting average on balls in play (.375), The six RBIs tied
Gil McDougald's 55-year franchise record for most in one inning (McDougald batted in six runs in one inning in 1951, his rookie season).
Alex Rodriguez broke the record shared by Abreu and McDougald by driving in seven runs in the sixth inning of 2009 regular season finale, also against Tampa Bay.
2007 and 2008 seasons After getting off to a slow start in (2007), Abreu finished the season strong putting up 101 RBI, 16 home runs and a .283 batting average. On September 18, Abreu hit two home runs and had 6 RBI in a game versus the
Chicago White Sox and
Javier Vázquez. He finished the season with a .296 average, 20 home runs, and 100 RBI.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 2009 season On February 12, 2009, Abreu signed a $5 million, one-year deal with the
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and was expected to play
left field. However, after
Vladimir Guerrero was moved to
DH due to injury, Abreu saw more action at his natural position in right field. After struggling early in the season, Abreu hit .380 with 28 RBI in 26 games in July and was named the American League Player of the Month. In 2009, he led the AL in errors by an outfielder, with 8. Though Abreu stated that he enjoyed his season with the Angels and was credited with helping many of the team's younger players to improve their swings and patience at the plate, he turned down a two-year, $16 million extension on his contract on October 15.
2010–2012 seasons On November 5, 2009, the first day eligible players could file for free agency, Abreu accepted a two-year deal with the Angels, with a club option for 2012. He cited the Angels manager,
Mike Scioscia as one of the reasons, saying "He's one of those managers that lets you play the game, and he gives you big support." He also noted the organization publicly recognized his career achievements and consistently delivered opportunities to succeed in the postseason, saying, "This is a team that gives you an opportunity always to be in the playoffs. This time, my first time with them, I was very close to getting to the World Series, so why not stay? Of course you want a team that is going to give you opportunities to be in the World Series and win the World Series. I don't want to take a chance with someone else." During the 2011–2012 offseason, the
New York Yankees proposed a trade to the Angels that would have sent starting pitcher
A. J. Burnett to Anaheim for Abreu. Abreu would have become the Yankees' regular designated hitter, but Burnett vetoed the trade. On February 20, 2012, Burnett was traded to the
Pittsburgh Pirates and the Yankees signed
Raúl Ibañez to be the DH. Abreu was already annoyed that he would not be playing every day for the Angels, and when he learned what Burnett had done, he ordered Angels' management to either play him every day as the designated hitter or trade him. Another proposed trade, which would have sent Abreu to the
Cleveland Indians for
Lou Marson, fell through. Abreu was released by the Angels on April 27, 2012, and replaced on the roster by future Rookie of the Year and MVP Award winner
Mike Trout.
Los Angeles Dodgers in 2012 On May 4, 2012, Abreu signed a contract with the
Los Angeles Dodgers. He was designated for assignment on August 1, 2012. Abreu cleared waivers and accepted an assignment to AAA
Albuquerque. He had six hits in his 17 at-bats for the Isotopes before rejoining the Dodgers as a September call-up, spending the last month of the season as a pinch hitter. He played in 92 games with the Dodgers, hitting .246 with three home runs and 19 RBI. He was released before the season on March 27.
New York Mets in 2014 On March 31, 2014, Abreu signed a minor league deal with the
New York Mets. On April 21, the Mets promoted Abreu from the Triple-A
Las Vegas 51s, after trading
Ike Davis to the
Pittsburgh Pirates. He was designated for assignment on August 4 and officially released on August 10. However, just four days later on August 14, the Mets re-signed Abreu to another minor league contract. He was called back up to the majors on September 9, 2014. Abreu announced his retirement from baseball on September 26. He singled in his final at-bat on September 28. ==Batting style==