Ever since arriving stateside in 2014 after years of plying his trade in Cuba, Jose Abreu has been one of the premier power-hitting first basemen in the entire MLB. Abreu, in nine seasons for the Chicago White Sox, has hit 243 home runs and has driven in 863 runs, and he's been good for a .860 career OPS.
Thus, plenty of teams are in heavy pursuit of Abreu in free agency. However, geography may play a heavy part in deciding which team Abreu signs with amid rumored interest from contending teams such as the Houston Astros and San Diego Padres.
Per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required), the Tampa Bay Rays and Miami Marlins could be dark-horse contenders for Jose Abreu's signature, as Abreu owns a house south of Miami.
“José Abreu remains a target of the Astros, Padres and other clubs, but one executive with a pulse on the market senses that the free-agent first baseman is intrigued by the possibility of playing for one of the two Florida teams. […] The question is whether the Marlins or Rays, two of the game’s most reluctant spenders, would be willing to meet his price,” Rosenthal wrote.
The Rays and Marlins were ranked 23rd and 26th in 2022 total payroll, per Spotrac, rendering concerns regarding their willingness to make a free agency splash valid. Nonetheless, the Rays may be a more likely destination for Abreu than the Marlins, as a boost in Tampa Bay's offense could go a long way towards restoring them to the heights they reached in 2021 when they won 100 games.
Nonetheless, with Jose Abreu set to turn 36 years old in January, he might still end up preferring to land with a contender such as the Astros, according to Rosenthal.
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