HOUSTON — Where would the Houston Astros be without Jeremy Peña?
Last October, as the Astros lost to the Atlanta Braves in the World Series, Peña was an untested player on the team’s taxi squad — a group of reserve players kept ready just in case. Carlos Correa was firmly implanted as the team’s star shortstop, and de facto spokesman, while Peña, Correa’s heir apparent with free agency looming, had only 182 minor league games under his belt.
A year later, Peña’s mantle is filling up: a Gold Glove Award, the 2022 American League Championship Most Valuable Player Award trophy and, after a 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 6 on Saturday that capped the Astros’ second title in six seasons, the World Series M.V.P. trophy.
By collecting 10 hits and playing stout defense against the Phillies, Peña, 25, became the first rookie position player to be named the World Series M.V.P. He joined pitcher Liván Hernández (with the Miami Marlins in 1997) as the only rookies to win both an L.C.S. and the World Series M.V.P. awards in the same year.
“Individuals awards are cool and all, but that’s the trophy we want right there,” Peña said while pointing to the Commissioner’s Trophy as he received his M.V.P. award on television after the game. From the stands, a fan held an “M.V.Peña” sign.
If not for Peña, the Astros could have been in a difficult position. When it became clear Houston was not going to re-sign Correa, Peña was appointed as his replacement. Correa eventually signed with the Minnesota Twins during spring training.
Peña was not only a godsend for the Astros defensively but at the plate. In 136 regular-season games, he hit .253 with a .715 on-base plus slugging percentage and 22 home runs. Only Seattle’s Julio Rodríguez, the front-runner for the A.L. Rookie of the Year Award, had more home runs among rookies this year.
“I’d say the hardest part was just blocking everything that’s not part of the game,” Peña said of his first season. “There’s a saying that you can’t sink a ship with water around. It sinks if water gets inside. So I just try to stay strong and keep the water outside my head.”
As one would expect, Peña struggled at the plate in the second half of the regular season. But he corrected his troubles and impressed his teammates, not only with his demeanor throughout the down period but during the high-pressure postseason.
In a division series sweep over the Seattle Mariners, Peña hit .250 (4 for 16) with one home run. He got better as the Astros advanced and the stakes grew higher, hitting .353 (6 for 17) with two home runs in an A.L.C.S. sweep of the Yankees, and then .400 (10 for 25) with one home run against the Phillies.
“He was a rookie in the regular season,” Astros left fielder Yordan Alvarez said in Spanish. “When the playoffs started, he was a veteran.”
“He’s been unbelievable,” Astros third baseman Alex Bregman added. “I mean, seriously, just so proud of him. He’s learned how to deal with success, learned how to deal with failure, and he’s been a man on a mission since he got here just to be himself.”
In an alternate universe, Correa accepted the team’s contract offer of $160 million over five years after the 2021 World Series. But in that scenario, where would the Astros and Peña be?
“You have to pick and choose sometimes and those decisions are never easy,” Astros owner Jim Crane said. “We knew Jeremy was a good player. We knew he had a lot of skills. Quite frankly, he exceeded our expectations and won two M.V.P.s. But that’s a judgment call at the time that he can fill the hole, maybe not a Carlos, but he proved to be just as good or maybe better, who knows?”
Added Astros General Manager James Click: “You have to make tough decisions in this job and Jeremy is making it look like it was an easy decision, and it wasn’t. Carlos is a great player and has been a huge part of this franchise. But to do what Jeremy did and to step in and to elevate his game in the playoffs, it just speaks volumes of his hard work, his character, the talent that he has. That’s not that many special guys on the planet that can do what he just did.”
Had Correa remained in Houston, Lance McCullers Jr., a longtime Astros pitchers, said Peña “would’ve been a big leaguer for us this year no matter what, and I think if we had Carlos Correa, we would’ve been just fine.”
Joe Espada, the Astros bench coach who works with the team’s infielders, said that as he saw Peña in spring training over the years, he was impressed by Peña’s strength, humility and baseball smarts.
Early on, Espada said he didn’t think about Peña replacing Correa. “But I said,” Espada continued, “if one day he would have to replace Carlos, he had the ability.” In following years, as Peña further developed, Espada said he thought to himself, “This kid can be a special player.”
Peña was born in the Dominican Republic but his family moved to Providence, R.I. when he was 12. He didn’t speak any English, which made life tough at first, but he learned a lot on the baseball field from his bilingual teammates.
After the trophy and award presentation on Saturday, Peña found his parents on the field and engulfed each in a long embrace. As they hugged, Peña rested his head on his father’s shoulder.
Peña called his parents his “real-life superheroes.” He added, “Without them, I wouldn’t be in this position.” Following big hits during the postseason, Peña made a heart sign with his hands and pointed it toward his mother in the stands.
“I’m so excited,” Peña’s father, Gerónimo, said in Spanish. “All I can say: happy, happy, happy.”
Peña’s mother, Cecilia, kept calling it all a blessing. Gerónimo, who played in parts of seven major-league seasons with St. Louis and Cleveland but never reached the postseason, said that he was more nervous watching his son play than when he played.
While celebrating later in the clubhouse, Peña was still in disbelief that his journey had him living out his dream, and so quickly at that.
“I don’t even know where I’m at right now,” he said. “I’m in the clouds.”
Tyler Kepner contributed reporting.
