Chicago White Sox hitter Jose Abreu launched “Abreu’s Amigos” – a community program with the Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago (ESMC) Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research. Passionate about supporting children with special needs, Abreu built the program with ESMC to focus on providing regular opportunities for students with special needs to develop social skills in a recreational setting through field trips to the ballpark.

Abreu also presented a $10,000 donation to ESMC before inviting students to participate in a baseball clinic on the White Sox Field at the school, which the team helped to build in 2008. Teammates Emilio Bonifacio, Melky Cabrera and Alexei Ramirez joined Abreu to help teach ESMC students adapted baseball skills alongside Bulls/Sox Academy coaches. As part of the program, students participating in Abreu’s Amigos will visit U.S. Cellular Field throughout the season for meet-and-greet opportunities with Abreu. The visits are designed to support social development in real-world situations. Research shows that extracurricular activity can increase levels of social engagement and self confidence in individuals living with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).