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Jeremy Peña

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Jeremy Joan Peña (born September 22, 1997) is a Dominican-American professional baseball shortstop for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). He attended the University of Maine and played college baseball for the Black Bears. The Astros selected Peña in the third round of the 2018 MLB draft, and he made his MLB debut in 2022.

Jeremy Peña
Peña with the Houston Astros in 2022
Houston Astros – No. 3
Shortstop
Born: (1997-09-22) September 22, 1997 (age 27)
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
April 7, 2022, for the Houston Astros
MLB statistics
(through 2024 season)
Batting average.261
Home runs47
Runs batted in185
Stolen bases44
Teams
Career highlights and awards

In 2022, Peña became the first rookie shortstop to win a Gold Glove Award and the first to hit a home run in the World Series. During the Astros' 2022 championship run, Peña was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) of both the American League Championship Series (ALCS) and World Series (WS), becoming the first American League (AL) player to earn both awards in the same year. He was the youngest position player to win the World Series MVP award.

Early life and amateur career

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Jeremy Peña was born and raised in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, before he and his family moved to Providence, Rhode Island, when he was nine years old.[1] His father, Gerónimo, is a former infielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for the St. Louis Cardinals and Cleveland Indians from 1990 to 1996.[2] Jeremy attended Classical High School in Providence, playing baseball and running track and cross country. In 2014, his junior year, he batted .352.[3] As a senior in 2015, he hit .390 with two home runs.[4] Following his senior year, he was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 39th round of the 2015 MLB draft, but he did not sign. Instead, he enrolled with the University of Maine where he played college baseball.

As a freshman at Maine in 2016, Peña started and played in 55 games, batting .283 with one home run, 15 runs batted in (RBIs), and 11 stolen bases,[5] earning a spot on the America East Conference All-Rookie Team.[6] That summer, he played in the New England Collegiate Baseball League with the Plymouth Pilgrims. In 2017, Peña's sophomore year, he started 54 games and hit .319 with six home runs and 32 RBIs.[7] Following the season, he played in the Cape Cod Baseball League with the Chatham Anglers, earning All-Star honors.[8][9] In 2018, as a junior, he once again started 54 games, hitting .308/.393/.469 with five home runs, 28 RBIs, and ten stolen bases, earning American East Second-Team honors.[10]

Professional career

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Minor leagues

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The Houston Astros selected Peña in the third round of the 2018 MLB draft.[11][12] Peña signed with Houston and made his professional debut with the Tri-City ValleyCats of the Class A Short Season New York-Penn League, batting .250 with one home run and ten RBIs over 36 games, earning All-Star honors.[13] In 2019, Peña began the year with the Quad Cities River Bandits of the Class A Midwest League, with whom he was named an All-Star, before being promoted to the Fayetteville Woodpeckers of the Class A-Advanced Carolina League in June.[14][15][16] Over 109 games between the two teams, he slashed .303/.385/.440 with seven home runs, 54 RBIs, and 20 stolen bases.[17] After the season, he played in the Arizona Fall League with the Peoria Javelinas.[18]

Peña did not play a minor league game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.[19] On April 21, 2021, it was announced that Peña would undergo surgery on his left wrist, causing him to miss part of the season.[20] He was activated off the injured list in late August, and was assigned to the Sugar Land Skeeters of the Triple-A West.[21] Over 30 games, he slashed .287/.346/.598 with ten home runs and 19 RBIs.[22]

Upon conclusion of the 2021–22 Dominican Professional Baseball League season, Peña was awarded a second consecutive Gold Glove at shortstop. In 30 games, he produced a .970 fielding percentage, 5.7 range factor, and nine double plays turned along with five errors.[23]

Houston Astros

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2022: Gold Glove Award, ALCS MVP, and World Series MVP

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On November 19, 2021, the Astros selected Peña's contract and added him to their 40-man roster.[24] Following the departure of incumbent shortstop Carlos Correa via free agency, Peña was named starting shortstop during 2022 spring training.[25][26] He made his major league debut on Opening Day versus the Los Angeles Angels.[27] On April 8, 2022, Peña hit his first major league home run while his parents were being interviewed during the broadcast.[28] On April 24, he hit his first career walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning versus the Toronto Blue Jays, helping lead the Astros to an 8–7 win.[29] On May 17, Peña hit the third of five Astros home runs in the second inning versus starter Nathan Eovaldi of the Boston Red Sox, tying the major league record for home runs hit by a team in one inning as the Astros rolled to a 13–4 victory.[30]

On June 13, 2022, Peña sustained a left thumb injury versus the Texas Rangers and was placed on the 10-day injured list.[31] The Astros activated him on June 26.[32] On July 3, Peña produced his both first career four-hit and multi-homer game, as well as his second career walk-off home run, sealing a 4–2 win over the Angels.[33] The Astros made Peña their regular number 2 hitter during the final phase of the regular season to replace an injured Michael Brantley. Going into the last regular-season series versus the Philadelphia Phillies, the Astros had produced an incredible 41–6 record with Peña batting second in the lineup.[34]

Over the 2022 regular season, Peña batted .253./289/.426 with 132 hits, 22 home runs, 63 RBIs, 72 runs scored, 11 stolen bases, 22 walks, 135 strikeouts, and had the lowest walk/strikeout ratio in the majors (0.16).[35] He tied Correa for the franchise rookie record for most home runs by a shortstop. Peña also ranked second in home runs, fourth in hits, and fifth in runs scored and RBIs among major league rookies.[36] He had the fastest sprint speed on the Astros, at 29.4 feet per second.[37]

On defense, Peña ranked second in the American League (AL) in Defensive Wins Above Replacement (2.4, dWAR),[38] third in the AL in errors committed (19), and third among AL shortstops in total zone runs (8).[39] He played 134 games at shortstop, starting 132 of them. He was graded 15 defensive runs better than “average” at shortstop.[40]

Making his postseason debut in the American League Division Series (ALDS), Peña singled to precede a Yordan Álvarez game-winning home run in both of the first two games. The third game—which featured a postseason-record 17 scoreless innings—was decided by Peña's home run in the top of the 18th inning off Penn Murfee. His first career home run on the postseason stage, it thus concluded the longest shutout game in postseason history, 1–0, and clinched an ALDS sweep for Houston.[41] Peña was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the American League Championship Series (ALCS), hitting .353 with two home runs in the Astros' four-game sweep of the New York Yankees.[42] In Game 5 of the World Series, he homered off Noah Syndergaard of the Phillies to become the first rookie shortstop to hit a home run in World Series play. The Astros won the World Series in six games, and Peña became the third rookie ever to be named the World Series MVP. He also became the first American League (AL) player–and ninth overall–to win both LCS and WS MVP honors in the same year.[43][44]

2023

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On July 29, 2023, Peña doubled among two hits and collected a career-best four RBI to lead an Astros' season-high scoring output in a 17–4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.[45] Peña's five hits on August 27 established a career-high, greatly contributing to a 17–4 win over the Detroit Tigers, including a franchise record-tying 25 hits.[46] In the 2023 regular season, Peña played in a career-high 150 games, and also had career-highs with 152 hits, 81 runs scored, 32 doubles, 13 stolen bases, and 43 walks. He batted .263/.324/.381 in 634 plate appearances. On defense, he ranked second among AL shortstops with 150 games played, ranked first in putouts (200), assists (362), double plays turned (89), and third in errors (14).[47] Peña struggled during the Astros playoff run, batting .200 with only one run driven in 11 games.

2024

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On August 2, 2024, Peña was announced as the Astros' nominee for the annual Heart & Hustle Award.[48] In 2024, he batted .266/.308/.394 with 15 home runs, 70 RBIs, and 20 stolen bases in 602 at bats, and led MLB in infield hits, with 31.[49]

Awards and honors

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Although he finished fifth in the AL Rookie of the Year (ROY) rankings,[50] Peña was awarded the AL 2022 Gold Glove Award for his play at shortstop. He became the first Astros rookie to win a Gold Glove, and the first rookie ever to win a Gold Glove at shortstop in MLB history.[51]

The Houston chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) named Peña the Astros' Rookie of the Year.[36]

On November 30, 2022, Peña was awarded the Key to the City of Providence in a 90-minute ceremony attended by officials including Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee and Mayor Jorge Elorza.[52]

Personal life

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Peña is a fan of English soccer club Manchester City FC.[53]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Kyle, Brad (September 4, 2019). "Like Father, Like Infielder: Astros' Jeremy Pena Follows Dad's Footsteps". The Runner Sports. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  2. ^ Batterson, Steve (May 1, 2019). "Like father, like son for Bandits' Peña". The Quad-City Times. Archived from the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  3. ^ "At Classical (R.I.), Pena attracting a crowd". ESPN.com. May 15, 2015. Archived from the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  4. ^ "Jeremy Pena – Baseball". University of Maine Athletics. Archived from the original on June 13, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  5. ^ Mahoney, Larry (May 31, 2016). "UMaine baseball coach confident of turnaround after another losing season". Bangor Daily News. Archived from the original on May 2, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  6. ^ Mahoney, Larry (February 16, 2017). "Coach: UMaine baseball team should be noticeably improved". Bangor Daily News. Archived from the original on May 2, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  7. ^ Mahoney, Larry (April 5, 2018). "Slick-fielding UMaine shortstop may be following his dad to the big leagues". Bangor Daily News. Archived from the original on May 2, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  8. ^ "#14 Jeremy Pena - Profile". pointstreak.com. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  9. ^ "Cape League All-Stars Set To Shine On Saturday". Cape Cod Chronicle. July 19, 2017. Archived from the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  10. ^ Iris Ramirez (April 22, 2020). "Houston Astros: Introducing Jeremy Peña – Overtime Heroics". Overtime Heroics. Overtimeheroics.net. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  11. ^ staff, Sports. "Providence's Jeremy Pena drafted by Astros". providencejournal.com. Archived from the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  12. ^ "Sports Digest: Two UMaine players selected in 2018 MLB amateur draft". June 5, 2018. Archived from the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  13. ^ "2018 NYPL All-Stars Announced". MiLB.com. Archived from the original on June 13, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  14. ^ Duff, Dale (June 14, 2019). "Pena Selected For MWL All Star Game". 92.9 The Ticket. Archived from the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  15. ^ Mahoney, Larry (July 15, 2019). "Ex-UMaine shortstop climbing minor league ladder". Bangor Daily News. Archived from the original on May 2, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  16. ^ Gullickson, Eric (June 29, 2019). "Former UMaine short stop Pena promoted to Class A-Advanced league". www.wabi.tv. Archived from the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  17. ^ "Skeeters spotlight: Jeremy Pena". August 30, 2021. Archived from the original on September 1, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  18. ^ "Jeremy Pena and Jojanse Torres Selected to Join Arizona Fall League". OurSports Central. August 28, 2019. Archived from the original on September 25, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  19. ^ Jeff Todd (June 30, 2020). "2020 Minor League Season Canceled". MLB Trade Rumors. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  20. ^ "West Notes: Solano, Crawford, Rendon, Fiers, Pena". MLB Trade Rumors. April 21, 2021. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  21. ^ Danielle Lerner (August 28, 2021). "Astros shortstop prospect Jeremy Peña assigned to Class AAA Sugar Land". Houstonchronicle.com. Archived from the original on September 1, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  22. ^ Thomas Lott, LMTonline.com / Laredo Morning Times (November 9, 2021). "It's Jeremy Pena's time in Houston". Laredo Morning Times. Lmtonline.com. Archived from the original on December 4, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  23. ^ Van Doren, Kenny (December 29, 2021). "Astros prospect Jeremy Peña wins Gold Glove in LIDOM". Climbing Tal's Hill. Retrieved September 6, 2022.
  24. ^ Rome, Chandler (November 19, 2021). "Astros add prospect Jeremy Peña, others to 40-man roster ahead of Rule 5 deadline". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on November 26, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  25. ^ Rome, Chandler (March 16, 2022). "With Carlos Correa in flux, Jeremy Peña is favorite to be Astros shortstop". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  26. ^ Kaplan, Jake (March 17, 2022). "If not Carlos Correa, then who? On Jeremy Peña, the depth options and the state of the Astros at shortstop". The Athletic. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  27. ^ "Astros rookie Jeremy Peña: Everything you need to know about the new guy". Houston Chronicle. April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  28. ^ "Peña's first homer interrupts parents' interview". MLB.com.
  29. ^ Associated Press (April 24, 2022). "Peña's 2-run homer in 10th leads Astros over Blue Jays 8–7". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
  30. ^ Rome, Chandler (May 18, 2022). "Boston bash: Astros' record-tying inning fuels rout of Red Sox". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  31. ^ Williams, Madison (June 15, 2022). "Jeremy Pena won't swing back for at least a week, Dusty Baker says". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  32. ^ "Yankees' Judge walks off Astros for 2nd time in 4 days". ESPN.com. Associated Press. June 26, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  33. ^ McTaggart, Brian (July 3, 2022). "Peña walks it off with 2nd HR after Valdez, Astros fan 20". MLB.com. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
  34. ^ "Peña homers, drives in 3 to lead Astros over Rays 3–1". ESPN.com. Associated Press. October 2, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  35. ^ "Splits leaderboards". FanGraphs. Retrieved October 14, 2022.
  36. ^ a b McTaggart, Brian (October 8, 2022). "Alvarez named Astros MVP by Houston BBWAA: Verlander named team Pitcher of the Year; Peña, Maldonado also honored". MLB.com. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
  37. ^ "Statcast Sprint Speed Leaderboard". baseballsavant.com.
  38. ^ "2022 American League batting leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  39. ^ "2022 American League fielding leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  40. ^ "Oops! All Astros: Jeremy Peña". The Crawfish Boxes. November 23, 2022.
  41. ^ "Peña's 18th-inning HR sends Astros past Mariners for sweep". ESPN.com. Associated Press. October 15, 2022. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  42. ^ Kramer, Daniel (October 23, 2022). "Peña powers Astros, named ALCS MVP". MLB.com. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
  43. ^ Axisa, Mike (November 5, 2022). "2022 World Series MVP: Astros' Jeremy Peña becomes third rookie to win postseason honor". CBSSports.com. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  44. ^ Castrovince, Anthony (November 6, 2022). "Super shortstop Peña makes history as World Series MVP". MLB.com. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  45. ^ "Peña has career-high 4 RBIs as Astros score season high in 17–4 rout of Rays". ESPN.com. Associated Press. July 29, 2023. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  46. ^ Kawahara, Matt (August 27, 2023). "Astros 17, Tigers 4: Houston ties franchise record with 25 hits in rout of Detroit". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  47. ^ "Jeremy Peña stats, height, weight, position, rookie status & more". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  48. ^ Paredes Hernández, Perla (August 2, 2024). "Jeremy Peña named Houston Astros' winner of Heart and Hustle Award from MLB alumni". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
  49. ^ "2024 Major League Leaders," Fangraphs.
  50. ^ Hill, David (November 15, 2022). "Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena gets last laugh". Call To The Pen. Retrieved October 26, 2024.
  51. ^ McTaggart, Brian (November 1, 2022). "Kyle Tucker, Jeremy Peña win first Gold Glove Awards". MLB.com. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
  52. ^ Parshy, R. Nikhil (November 30, 2022). "World Series MVP Jeremy Pena awarded hometown Providence's highest civilian honor". Sportskeeda. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  53. ^ "Shoutout to @ManCity for having us at tonight's game". x.com. Jeremy Peña. July 21, 2024.
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