I never envied Jeremy Peña’s position when he broke camp back in 2022 as the starting shortstop for the Astros, fresh off another World Series appearance. Replacing Carlos Correa was never going to be an easy task. It arguably created unreasonable expectations. However, the then-24-year-old rookie performed better than most would reasonably expect, becoming a league-average bat with exceptional defense worth slightly more than three wins. He was the ALCS and World Series MVP that year, thanks to a late-season adjustment at the plate. That’s precious production from the shortstop position.
We also know that Peña is a tinkerer at the plate.