3 reasons Jeremy Pena will lift Houston Astros to World Series triumph in 2022

Jeremy Pena is playing out of his mind in the postseason for the Houston Astros this year. The rookie shortstop has been an excellent replacement for Carlos Correa, who left in free agency last season. He has three home runs in the postseason for the unbeatable Astros.

Jeremy Peña about to win ALCS MVP https://t.co/YfFb3jMN17

He's thriving in the postseason, much like Correa did. He's playing like he's been there before and that's a big reason as to why the Astros are where they are right now.

Jeremy Pena will be key to the Houston Astros winning the World Series

While players like Jose Altuve have been struggling at the plate for much of the postseason, Pena carried the load for them. He doesn't want his childhood dream of winning a World Series to slip through his fingers. His performance will be key to Houston raising the World Series title when this is all said and done.

#1 Timely hitting

Jeremy Pena was a menace to the New York Yankees. He went 6-17 with two doubles and two home runs. He completely deflated the Yankees with his three-run home run to tie the game in game four of the ALCS. Houston's usual offensive monsters like Altuve and Yordan Alvarez have been pretty quiet, especially in the ALCS. Pena has picked up the slack for the two stars.

Jeremy Pena was also the one to send the Seattle Mariners home with his 18th-inning solo home run. He's been one of Houston's hottest hitters in the postseason and it doesn't look like he's going to slow down in the World Series.

#2 Defense

The Houston Astros have only made one error throughout the entire postseason and it was a tough error at that. Houston has been rock-solid as a team defensively and that all starts with their shortstop. As a shortstop, Jeremy Pena has taken the majority of the defensive plays and he's been perfect so far. He's like a vacuum cleaner at shortstop, sucking everything up. He, along with Altuve, are some of the best up the middle.

Astros clinched the AL West last night

One component of their division title - defense

* Team ranks 4th overall in Defensive Runs Saved
* Outfielders rank 1st in Runs Saved
* Jeremy Peña ranks 1st among SS
* Kyle Tucker ranks T-3rd among RF

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#3 Sets the tone

Manager Dusty Baker likes to hit Pena second in the lineup behind Altuve and in front of Alvarez. He looks to put some pressure on the opposing pitcher to start the game off. While Altuve struggled against the Yankees, Pena had to set the tone for their offense. He's either looking to hit Altuve around if he gets on or he's trying to get on base for Alvarez. Houston has one of the toughest lineups to face and Jeremy Pena only adds to that.

Jeremy Pena has been playing like a seasoned veteran this postseason. His clutch at-bats have carried the Astros throughout the postseason. He'll look to keep up this momentum and carry the Astros past the Phillies.