Major Leaguer resume Vol.91/ WBC Player’s resume Vol.77: Jeremy Pena(Houston Astros): Major Candidate for Team Dominican Republic: “Houston’s new hope!!”

■Today’s player
Today's player's resume concerns the Houston Astros shortstop, Jeremy Pena. Pena was born in the Dominican Republic and could commit to Team Dominican Republic in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
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■The KAISPO's baseball analyst comments
"Pena is a young shortstop for the evergreen Astros, who just debuted in 2022. As a rookie, he admirably filled in for an absolute shortstop, Carlos Correa, who left for the Twins. Pena hit 22 homers, the second most among rookies, and also batted .345 with four home runs in the postseason, winning both the ALCS and the World Series MVP. He was good at hitting an inside pitch. Pena had a double-play partner on defense with Altuve, recording a 2.4 dWAR and receiving the Gold Glove Award. I expect him to make a further leap forward in his second season, 2023."

■Story
Jeremy Pena was initially selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 39th round of the 2015 MLB draft, but he entered the University of Maine. He was again drafted by the Houston Astros with the 102nd overall selection in the 3rd round of the 2018 MLB draft and signed that time.

In 2019, the young infielder stood out in the Astros' A and A+ affiliates, batting .303/.385/.440 with seven home runs and 53 RBIs across 109 games. He joined the Astros' opening roster for the 2022 season since Houston failed to re-sign a star shortstop, Carlos Correa, who moved to the Minnesota Twins.

The 25-year-old right-handed hitter made his big league debut in an opening game against the Los Angeles Angels on April 7, 2022. Pena started the game as a shortstop and batting seventh, going 0 for 4 with two strikeouts. The following day, he had three hits, including his first career homer off right-hander Mike Mayers in front of his parents. His first campaign concluded with .253, 22 long balls,  63 RBIs, and 11 stolen bases in 136 outings. Also, he marked a .963 fielding PCT and 2.4 dWAR, winning the American League Gold Glove as a shortstop.

Pena kept his excellent condition in the postseason, appearing in all 13 contests with a high batting average of .345, four homers, 8 RBIs, and 12 runs scored to help his team win its second World Series title, being named the MVP of the ALCS and the World Series.
(MLB No.388 KAISPO No.1568)