From hoops to the mound: How Abreu became a power arm

June 5th, 2024

This story was excerpted from Brian McTaggart¡¯s Astros Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

HOUSTON -- When the Astros put together a two-on-two basketball shooting tournament to break up the monotony of Spring Training in 2019, ace pitcher Justin Verlander picked a rookie reliever that he didn¡¯t know much about to be his teammate.

was 6-foot-1, but he had broad shoulders and appeared to know his way around the court. That was good enough for Verlander, who, unbeknownst to him, had picked the best basketball player on the roster. Abreu played competitive basketball growing up in the Dominican Republic. In fact, the Verlander/Abreu team was so dominant, the tournament was never completed.

¡°I was too good,¡± Abreu joked.

Abreu was eventually steered towards baseball and signed with the Astros as a 16-year-old in 2013. The decision to play baseball was a wise one, considering Abreu has emerged as one of baseball¡¯s best relievers over the past couple of years. He posted a 1.94 ERA in 55 games in 2022 and a 1.75 ERA in 72 contests last year, striking out 100 batters in 72 innings.

His success on the baseball field is a credit to his work ethic and the family back home in the Dominican Republic that made sure he stayed on the right track. Abreu grew up in the barrios of Sim¨®n Bol¨ªvar and Las Ca?itas in the nation¡¯s capital of Santo Domingo, where he saw friends get involved in drugs and crime.

¡°I grew up in kind of like a dangerous neighborhood, but I just grew up in a sport environment,¡± Abreu said. ¡°I¡¯ve been playing basketball my whole life, and then I just got into baseball because of my friends. They just loved to play baseball. I didn¡¯t know people get signed if you have talent.

¡°My mom asked me which sport I would love to play, and as a kid, I chose basketball. I couldn¡¯t go to the field with my friends, but if I chose baseball, I [could] sneak into the basketball court and my mom [didn't] even notice. I said, ¡®OK, I decided to play baseball,¡¯ and I started to do really good.¡±

Abreu grew up watching basketball on TV with his dad, who was a fan of the Lakers. That meant Bryan was also a fan of the Lakers and the team¡¯s stars of that era: Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol and later LeBron James.

¡°My dad has played basketball his entire life, and he¡¯s still playing it,¡± Abreu said. ¡°I just grew up watching my dad. We have small basketball courts around the house and in the school and street. I used to play a lot of basketball with my friends.¡±

But it was while playing baseball that a scout was intrigued by what Abreu could do on the mound. He was invited to work out for the Astros at their Dominican Academy, where international scouting director Oz Ocampo, international crosschecker Marc Russo and national supervisor Rafael Bel¨¦n watched.

A skinny Abreu was throwing in the mid-80s, but he quickly made some adjustments, and the Astros were sold. They signed him for $40,000 -- a life-changing amount of money. Abreu¡¯s dad, Enrique Abreu, used to be a motorcycle delivery driver for hospitals. His mother, Belkys Simenez, worked customs at a port in Santo Domingo.

¡°When I signed, that was the first time that I knew baseball players could get money,¡± Abreu said. ¡°I was playing in the Dominican Summer League when I got my first paycheck. I just gave my whole check to my mom to pay the rent and stuff.¡±

The check was for $275.

Now that he¡¯s an established big leaguer and has made millions in his career, Abreu, who has a 2-year-old son named Ryan, has purchased a house for his mother and a car for his father. His sister recently got married and he made sure she had a nice apartment. Abreu has remained grounded and humble because of his family and his upbringing.

¡°My mother has always been there, just like my dad, too,¡± he said. ¡°My dad was always trying to get me some cleats and some gloves and stuff. Trying to be there for me every single time. They never asked me for anything economically, and they know it was a hard road, but he and my mom were working trying to help me as much as they can, making sure I have all the food and all the nutrition. They helped me a lot in that aspect.¡±

seductrice.net
universo-virtual.com
buytrendz.net
thisforall.net
benchpressgains.com
qthzb.com
mindhunter9.com
dwjqp1.com
secure-signup.net
ahaayy.com
tressesindia.com
puresybian.com
krpano-chs.com
cre8workshop.com
hdkino.org
peixun021.com
qz786.com
utahperformingartscenter.org
worldqrmconference.com
shangyuwh.com
eejssdfsdfdfjsd.com
playminecraftfreeonline.com
trekvietnamtour.com
your-business-articles.com
essaywritingservice10.com
hindusamaaj.com
joggingvideo.com
wandercoups.com
wormblaster.net
tongchengchuyange0004.com
internetknowing.com
breachurch.com
peachesnginburlesque.com
dataarchitectoo.com
clientfunnelformula.com
30pps.com
cherylroll.com
ks2252.com
prowp.net
webmanicura.com
sofietsshotel.com
facetorch.com
nylawyerreview.com
apapromotions.com
shareparelli.com
goeaglepointe.com
thegreenmanpubphuket.com
karotorossian.com
publicsensor.com
taiwandefence.com
epcsur.com
southstills.com
tvtv98.com
thewellington-hotel.com
bccaipiao.com
colectoresindustrialesgs.com
shenanddcg.com
capriartfilmfestival.com
replicabreitlingsale.com
thaiamarinnewtoncorner.com
gkmcww.com
mbnkbj.com
andrewbrennandesign.com
cod54.com
luobinzhang.com
faithfirst.net
zjyc28.com
tongchengjinyeyouyue0004.com
nhuan6.com
kftz5k.com
oldgardensflowers.com
lightupthefloor.com
bahamamamas-stjohns.com
ly2818.com
905onthebay.com
fonemenu.com
notanothermovie.com
ukrainehighclassescort.com
meincmagazine.com
av-5858.com
yallerdawg.com
donkeythemovie.com
corporatehospitalitygroup.com
boboyy88.com
miteinander-lernen.com
dannayconsulting.com
officialtomsshoesoutletstore.com
forsale-amoxil-amoxicillin.net
generictadalafil-canada.net
guitarlessonseastlondon.com
lesliesrestaurants.com
mattyno9.com
nri-homeloans.com
rtgvisas-qatar.com
salbutamolventolinonline.net
sportsinjuries.info
wedsna.com
rgkntk.com
bkkmarketplace.com
zxqcwx.com
breakupprogram.com
boxcardc.com
unblockyoutubeindonesia.com
fabulousbookmark.com
beat-the.com
guatemala-sailfishing-vacations-charters.com
magie-marketing.com
kingstonliteracy.com
guitaraffinity.com
eurelookinggoodapparel.com
howtolosecheekfat.net
marioncma.org
oliviadavismusic.com
shantelcampbellrealestate.com
shopleborn13.com
topindiafree.com
v-visitors.net
djjky.com
053hh.com
originbluei.com
baucishotel.com
33kkn.com
intrinsiqresearch.com
mariaescort-kiev.com
mymaguk.com
sponsored4u.com
crimsonclass.com
bataillenavale.com
searchtile.com
ze-stribrnych-struh.com
zenithalhype.com
modalpkv.com
bouisset-lafforgue.com
useupload.com
37r.net
autoankauf-muenster.com
bantinbongda.net
bilgius.com
brabustermagazine.com
indigrow.org
miicrosofts.net
mysmiletravel.com
selinasims.com
spellcubesapp.com
usa-faction.com
hypoallergenicdogsnames.com
dailyupdatez.com
foodphotographyreviews.com
cricutcom-setup.com
chprowebdesign.com
katyrealty-kanepa.com
tasramar.com
bilgipinari.org
four-am.com
indiarepublicday.com
inquick-enbooks.com
iracmpi.com
kakaschoenen.com
lsm99flash.com
nana1255.com
ngen-niagara.com
technwzs.com
virtualonlinecasino1345.com
wallpapertop.net
casino-natali.com
iprofit-internet.com
denochemexicana.com
eventhalfkg.com
medcon-taiwan.com
life-himawari.com
myriamshomes.com
nightmarevue.com
healthandfitnesslives.com
androidnews-jp.com
allstarsru.com
bestofthebuckeyestate.com
bestofthefirststate.com
bestwireless7.com
britsmile.com
declarationintermittent.com
findhereall.com
jingyou888.com
lsm99deal.com
lsm99galaxy.com
moozatech.com
nuagh.com
patliyo.com
philomenamagikz.net
rckouba.net
saturnunipessoallda.com
tallahasseefrolics.com
thematurehardcore.net
totalenvironment-inthatquietearth.com
velislavakaymakanova.com
vermontenergetic.com
kakakpintar.com
begorgeouslady.com
1800birks4u.com
2wheelstogo.com
6strip4you.com
bigdata-world.net
emailandco.net
gacapal.com
jharpost.com
krishnaastro.com
lsm99credit.com
mascalzonicampani.com
sitemapxml.org
thecityslums.net
topagh.com
flairnetwebdesign.com
rajasthancarservices.com
bangkaeair.com
beneventocoupon.com
noternet.org
oqtive.com
smilebrightrx.com
decollage-etiquette.com
1millionbestdownloads.com
7658.info
bidbass.com
devlopworldtech.com
digitalmarketingrajkot.com
fluginfo.net
naqlafshk.com
passion-decouverte.com
playsirius.com
spacceleratorintl.com
stikyballs.com
top10way.com
yokidsyogurt.com
zszyhl.com
16firthcrescent.com
abogadolaboralistamd.com
apk2wap.com
aromacremeria.com
banparacard.com
bosmanraws.com
businessproviderblog.com
caltonosa.com
calvaryrevivalchurch.org
chastenedsoulwithabrokenheart.com
cheminotsgardcevennes.com
cooksspot.com
cqxzpt.com
deesywig.com
deltacartoonmaps.com
despixelsetdeshommes.com
duocoracaobrasileiro.com
fareshopbd.com
goodpainspills.com
hemendekor.com
kobisitecdn.com
makaigoods.com
mgs1454.com
piccadillyresidences.com
radiolaondafresca.com
rubendorf.com
searchengineimprov.com
sellmyhrvahome.com
shugahouseessentials.com
sonihullquad.com
subtractkilos.com
valeriekelmansky.com
vipasdigitalmarketing.com
voolivrerj.com
zeelonggroup.com
1015southrockhill.com
10x10b.com
111-online-casinos.com
191cb.com
3665arpentunitd.com
aitesonics.com
bag-shokunin.com
brightotech.com
communication-digitale-services.com
covoakland.org
dariaprimapack.com
freefortniteaccountss.com
gatebizglobal.com
global1entertainmentnews.com
greatytene.com
hiroshiwakita.com
iktodaypk.com
jahatsakong.com
meadowbrookgolfgroup.com
newsbharati.net
platinumstudiosdesign.com
slotxogamesplay.com
strikestaruk.com
trucosdefortnite.com
ufabetrune.com
weddedtowhitmore.com
12940brycecanyonunitb.com
1311dietrichoaks.com
2monarchtraceunit303.com
601legendhill.com
850elaine.com
adieusolasomade.com
andora-ke.com
bestslotxogames.com
cannagomcallen.com
endlesslyhot.com
iestpjva.com
ouqprint.com
pwmaplefest.com
qtylmr.com
rb88betting.com
buscadogues.com
1007macfm.com
born-wild.com
growthinvests.com
promocode-casino.com
proyectogalgoargentina.com
wbthompson-art.com
whitemountainwheels.com
7thavehvl.com
developmethis.com
funkydogbowties.com
travelodgegrandjunction.com
gao-town.com
globalmarketsuite.com
blogshippo.com
hdbka.com
proboards67.com
outletonline-michaelkors.com
kalkis-research.com
thuthuatit.net
buckcash.com
hollistercanada.com
docterror.com
asadart.com
vmayke.org
erwincomputers.com
dirimart.org
okkii.com
loteriasdecehegin.com
mountanalog.com
healingtaobritain.com
ttxmonitor.com
nwordpress.com
11bolabonanza.com