Rhode Island’s Jeremy Peña wins World Series MVP as rookie leads Astros to title

HOUSTON (AP) – Jeremy Peña’s key to success was holding his head dry.

Capping a freshman season like no different, he grew to become the primary rookie place participant to win a World Collection MVP award Saturday night time after hitting .400 within the Houston Astros’ six-game victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.

“The toughest half was simply blocking all the things that is not a part of the sport,” Peña stated. “There is a saying which you could’t sink a ship with water round. It sinks if water will get inside. So I simply attempt to keep sturdy and maintain the water outdoors my head.”

Peña additionally received a Gold Glove and was the AL Championship Collection MVP. The 25-year-old shortstop grew to become the primary hitter to win these three prizes in a profession, in keeping with OptaSTATS – and he did all of it in his rookie season.

“It has quite a bit to do with my household, my upbringing,” he stated.

Peña was born within the Dominican Republic. He grew up in Windfall, R.I. and went on to play on the College of Maine.  

Peña praised Dusty Baker, the Astros’ 73-year-old supervisor. When Baker made his main league managerial debut for San Francisco on April 6, 1993, the leadoff hitter for the opposite staff was Peña’s father, St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Gerónimo Peña.

“Dusty Baker’s a legend within the sport,” Jeremy Peña stated. “Not simply because he is been round. He is had success at this sport. He brings the most effective out of his gamers. He provides you the arrogance to simply exit and play exhausting and let the sport maintain itself.”

Peña singled to chase Phillies starter Zack Wheeler in Recreation 6, giving the Astros two baserunners for the primary time. Yordan Alvarez adopted with a go-ahead, three-run homer that despatched Houston to a 4-1 victory.

Peña completed the postseason with a .345 batting common, 4 homers, eight RBIs and a 1.005 OPS. He additionally grew to become the primary rookie shortstop to win a Gold Glove, in addition to the primary to homer within the World Collection.

Simply 24 when he was handed the beginning job firstly of the season after Carlos Correa left as a free agent, Peña grew to become the third rookie at any place to earn World Collection MVP, becoming a member of a pair of right-handed pitchers: the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Larry Sherry in 1959 and Miami’s Liván Hernández in 1997.

Peña’s 18th-inning homer accomplished a Division Collection sweep at Seattle and he hit a go-ahead drive off Noah Syndergaard in Recreation 5 of the World Collection. His Recreation 2 jersey is headed to the Corridor of Fame.

“You need to make robust choices on this job, and Jeremy’s making it appear to be it was a straightforward choice, and it wasn’t,” Houston basic supervisor James Click on stated. “Carlos is a good participant, and he is been an enormous a part of this franchise. However to do what Jeremy did, to step in and elevate his sport within the playoffs, it simply speaks to his exhausting work, his character and the expertise that he has. There’s not that many particular guys on the planet that may do what he simply did.”

Peña grew to become the ninth participant to win MVP of a League Championship Collection and the World Collection in the identical season. He batted .353 with two homers and 4 RBIs towards the Yankees within the ALCS.

The one different participant to win an LCS MVP award, World Collection MVP and a Gold Glove throughout their profession was pitcher Orel Hershiser, who took all three prizes with the Dodgers in 1988.

Peña hit .291 with 22 homers and 63 RBIs in the course of the common season and sure will end excessive in AL Rookie of the Yr voting. Seattle outfielder Julio Rodríguez is the favourite.

Others to win LCS and World Collection MVP in a single yr have been Pittsburgh’s Willie Stargell (1979), St. Louis’ Darrell Porter (1982), Hershiser (1988), Hernández (2003), Philadelphia’s Cole Hamels (2008), the Cardinals’ David Freese (2011), San Francisco’s Madison Bumgarner (2014) and the Dodgers’ Corey Seager (2020).

Solely 4 different rookies have been LCS MVPs: Baltimore right-hander Mike Boddicker in 1983, Hernández in 1997, St. Louis right-hander Michael Wacha in 2013 and Tampa Bay outfielder Randy Arozarena in 2020.

Peña thought again to final yr’s Recreation 6 loss to Atlanta at Minute Maid Park, the place he joined the Astros however was inactive.

“These guys have been left with a bitter style of their mouth final yr,” he stated. “Me being within the dugout final yr, I did not wish to expertise that once more.”