Houston Astros hitting coach Alex Cintrón expects struggling José Abreu to bounce back: "Remind yourself who you are"

José Abreu arrived in Houston with great expectations on his shoulders, but his first season with the Astros has been anything but smooth sailing.

The veteran slugger has endured one of the toughest campaigns of his career. His power waned, his offensive production took a nosedive, and he battled persistent lower back pain throughout the year.

The Astros have established themselves as a true postseason powerhouse over the last few seasons. However, as they remain tied with the Minnesota Twins after two ALDS games, a resurgent Abreu may just turn out to be the difference maker.

In his first-ever playoff game for the Astros, Abreu knocked a single to left field to drive in Alex Bregman and put Dusty Baker’s side in a commanding position in Game 1. The ‘Stros went on to win 6-4.

Game 2 was an entirely different story, as the Astros bats went cold in a 6-2 loss. It was Houston’s first playoff loss at home since 2015. The Astros waited and waited all game for that one hit to get back in the game. Yordan Álvarez launched a two-run bomb in the bottom of the eighth, but the damage was already done.

It is in situations like these when one veteran hitter with a proven track record of coming in clutch can make all the difference. Enter Abreu, and Astros hitting coach Alex Cintrón knows exactly how much damage he is capable of causing.

The regular season may not have gone according to plan for Abreu, but postseason ball presents a clean slate for him.

Speaking to Chandler Rome of the Athletic, Cintrón revealed what he said to Abreu ahead of the postseason.

“Everyone will forget what you did… Everyone will remember what you did in September and October.”

One bad season doesn’t take anything away from José Abreu’s legacy

Cintrón was also quick to remind Abreu that he is still one of the best right-handed hitters in the game and that one poor season doesn’t tarnish his legacy.

Among righties, only Jose Altuve has more hits than Abreu since 2014. In that same span, only Nolan Arenado has more RBIs than him. When the Astros were getting ready to activate him from the IL, Cintrón compiled all of Abreu’s career statistics into a screenshot and sent it to him.

The accompanying message read, “This is you. Remind yourself who you are.”

If Abreu can find his true, hard-hitting self again as the playoffs unfold, the Astros may just find that extra impetus they need to go all the way.

They haven’t hit the highs of last season yet, but as postseason baseball has shown time and again, it’s winning in October that matters the most. Astros, in that regard, are a hard code to crack, and with Abreu firing on all cylinders, even harder.