Houston Astros star Jeremy Pena reflects on his remarkable experience of bagging the Mr. October Award from Reggie Jackson
Rookie Astros shortstop and the youngest player to ever be crowned World Series MVP, Jeremy Pena, was photographed in attendance at the star-studded Mr. October Foundation Celebrity Golf Classic hosted by Reggie Jackson on Monday at the Floridian National Golf Club.
At Reggie Jackson’s Mr. October Foundation Celebrity Golf Tournament Reggie gave his first @mroctober Award to Jeremy Pena: “It was special because Reggie has been a mentor to me..After Pena won his first World Series Reggie told him: “That’s one. Now you got to get four more.” https://t.co/aL5gnU90sN
"At Reggie Jackson’s Mr. October Foundation Celebrity Golf Tournament Reggie gave his first @mroctober Award to Jeremy Pena: 'It was special because Reggie has been a mentor to me.' After Pena won his first World Series Reggie told him: 'That’s one. Now you got to get four more,'" - Mark Berman.
An array of sporting icons and celebrities from across the country joined Pena to play golf and raise money for Jackson’s “Mr. October STEM 101 program.”
Others in attendance included MLB HOFers Derek Jeter, Ozzie Smith, Mike Schmidt, entertainers Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and Travis Scott, NFL Hall of Famers Marcus Allen, Jerome Bettis, Terrell Owens, and current Houston Astros players Kyle Tucker, Lance McCullers Jr. and Michael Brantley.
Pena, who was out at the event lending a hand to Reggie, referred to him as a “mentor” and said that nothing beats doing stuff like this for a good cause:
“I mean first, it's Reggie. You know Reggies’ been good to me since the first day. You know spring training, we kinda just gravitated towards each other and he quickly became a mentor. And to be out here, and supporting a great cause, you can’t beat it!”
When quizzed about what it meant to receive the first-ever Mr. October experience award, Pena described the moment as "special":
"It's special, it was special because like I said, Reggie has been a mentor to me since the first day. He was someone I could just call up in the season, and he was always available, and so uh, it was special. It meant a lot to me!"
Pena had a great last season, but will he be able to replicate that form this season? Well, only time will tell.
Jeremy Pena becomes first rookie shortstop to win Golden Glove award
Pena's career has seen a steep upward trajectory ever since he was selected by the Astros in the third round of the 2018 MLB draft. He's been busy re-writing the history books while making an equally important impact on the Astros' title run last season.
Last year, Pena became the first rookie shortstop in MLB history to win a Golden Glove award and was also the first to ever hit a home run in the World Series.
Jeremy Peña becomes the first rookie SS in MLB history to win a gold glove award 🏆 https://t.co/EnLSeK1hoW
"Jeremy Pena becomes the first rookie SS in MLB history to win a gold glove award" - FOX Sports: MLB
Jeremy Pena was also named the Most Valuable Player of both the American League Championship Series and World Series, becoming the first American League (AL) player to earn both awards in the same year.
The youngest to ever do so, Pena has a long, long way to go in the league.