Looking Back on Houston Astros Slugger Who Stepped Up During MLB Playoffs

The Houston Astros have received some great postseason performances in recent years, but one player sticks out.

Oct 2, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena (3) hits a single against the Detroit Tigers during the seventh inning of game two of the Wildcard round for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Minute Maid Park. / Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

As the old saying goes, all good things must come to an end eventually. For the Houston Astros, that was their streak of ALCS appearances, which was snapped this year at seven.

They were defeated by the Detroit Tigers in the Wild Card Round, dropping the first two games despite having home field. After years of answering the call and playing deep into October, it wasn’t meant to be this time.

To have that kind of sustained success, multiple people need to step up. The Astros had a really solid core, as someone would up their game when it mattered the most year in and year out.

The most memorable of those postseason performances came in 2022 courtesy of shortstop Jeremy Pena.

He was solid during the regular season, his first with the team as a rookie. He hit 22 home runs, which is still the most in his career in a single season, with 63 RBI and a slash line of .253/.289/.426.

Certainly solid numbers, but they pale in comparison to what he did once October rolled around. He was a one-man wrecking crew, making history along the way.

In 13 games, he recorded a slash line of .345/.367/.638, hitting four home runs with eight RBI. He had at least one hit in 12 of the games played and got better as the stakes got higher.

His batting average increased each series, as he was a .250 hitter in the ALDS against the Seattle Mariners, .353 in the ALCS against the New York Yankees and .400 in the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies.

He was named MVP of the ALCS and World Series, the first American League player to ever achieve that feat. Pena also hit the series-clinching home run in the 18th inning against the Mariners.

It was a historic run, put into perspective by Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report.

“At the time, Peña was only the fourth rookie to ever contribute at least 20 hits to a World Series-winning cause in the playoffs. Two of the other three (Derek Jeter and Chipper Jones) are in the Hall of Fame,” the MLB expert wrote.

There were other standouts from that run. Yordan Alvarez had several memorable hits and a combined no-hitter was thrown in Game 3 of the World Series.

But, it was Pena’s individual performance that will live on forever given how historically well he played.