Before signing with the Houston Astros, Jose Abreu had established himself as one of the best hitters in the game the last few seasons with the Chicago White Sox. He was primed to be yet another big Astros addition who would probably keep them squarely in World Series contention.

Although it is too soon to make a final ruling on the acquisition, the veteran first baseman has objectively been one the biggest disappointments of the 2023 MLB season to this point. His .232 batting average and .326 slugging percentage are severely below his career totals, as the 42-36 club desperately waits for a breakthrough. Abreu is doing everything he can to end his slump, though, including taking a rather unconventional approach at the plate.

In something that sounds straight out of Pedro Cerrano's playbook from Major League, the 2020 MVP is talking to his bat. He tells it “let's go,” via MLB.com's Sarah Wexler. But that is not the unusual part, believe it or not. He always engages in bat banter but is now making a critical adjustment that he hopes will be the solution to his Houston struggles.

“I was talking to [my bats] in English, and they don’t understand English,” Abreu said through his interpreter. It's hard to know what is more shocking, that baseball players still remain so superstitious or that the MLB is not doing a better job of accommodating the language barriers for bats? In any case, the change seems to be coinciding with a three-game hitting streak.

In fact, Jose Abreu is hitting .284 in June with a plethora of multi-hit games. The only thing missing now is the power. Though, that is an issue stemming from last season and could just be a product of being 36 years old.

The Astros have other big bats they can turn to, but they will  need Abreu to keep encouraging his as they look to regain their World Series form. Hey, whatever works right?