Astros' Abreu searching for confidence amid offensive slump

Houston Astros first baseman José Abreu is searching for answers amid a frigid start to the season at the plate.

The 37-year-old has mustered only three hits in 37 at-bats so far and has yet to hit a home run.

"I think a lot of it's just confidence," Abreu said Thursday, according to Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle. "Sometimes when you lose confidence, everything in the game gets hard. So, I think for me, it's just trying to get that confidence back at the plate."

Abreu is in the second season of a three-year, $58.5-million contract. He struggled in 2023, posting career-worst marks in batting average and OPS.

Abreu believes a lot of his offensive issues can be traced to a lack of timing at the plate.

"It's not there," Abreu said. "I'm going to be honest. The timing is not there."

The Astros are off to a 4-10 start. They were blown out to complete a three-game sweep at the hands of the Kansas City Royals on Thursday.

"We're going to get out of it," Abreu said. "Obviously, not having a solution might be part of the problem. But trust me, we're going to get out of this."