Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena and outfielder Jason Heyward will both start on the bench for Friday's series opener in Cleveland against the Guardians at Progressive Field. Grae Kessinger is starting at the 6 and batting ninth, while Mauricio Dubon is in left field and batting eighth against Guardians rookie left-hander Joey Cantillo. Pena doesn't sit often, as this is his first day off since Aug. 22. Kessinger made his big-league debut last year and played in 26 games, hitting .200 (8-for-40) with a homer and an RBI. He's only played in 20 games in 2024 and has gone hitless in 17 plate appearances with one walk and five strikeouts. DFS gamers should ignore him on Friday. Dubon, a super-utility man for the Astros, has very little DFS sleeper appeal at the bottom of the order with just four home runs and 47 RBI in 394 at-bats in 2024.
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena will get the day off on Thursday in the series opener against the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards. Mauricio Dubon will start at shortstop for the Astros and will hit ninth against Orioles right-hander Corbin Burnes. In five career at-bats against Burnes, Dubon is hitting .200 with a home run and two RBI. He won't be a recommended DFS play on Thursday, though, in the tough matchup while residing at the bottom of the batting order. Pena has earned a much-needed day of rest, as this will be his first day off since June 21 and only his third day off of the season. The 26-year-old shortstop has been solid in the month of August for the first-place 'Stros, hitting .286 (20-for-70) with three home runs, three doubles, three stolen bases and nine RBI in 18 games played. He should be back in there on Friday.
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena hit his 10th homer and stole his 13th base on Sunday, leading the Astros to a 10-2 win over the Boston Red Sox. Pena finished the day 3-for-5 and added a double, two runs, and two RBI. It was a nice day for the 26-year-old, but he's struggled mightily recently, slashing just .219/.286/.250 with no homers and no steals in August coming into tonight. It was actually his first homer and steal since July 23 when he had one of each as well. Although he provides some power and speed, his overall production doesn't quite make the cut in standard-size leagues. He can be a solid streamer and holds some value in deeper leagues.
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena had a big game in his team's 8-2 loss to the Oakland A's on Tuesday. Pena went 3-for-4 with a double, a solo homer, and a steal in the losing effort. The 26-year-old infielder has been swinging a hot bat for the Astros of late, batting .385 with two homers over his past seven contests. Overall, Pena is hitting .282 with 17 doubles, nine homers, 49 runs, 44 RBI, and 12 steals across 380 at-bats. His blend of power and speed makes him a solid fantasy shortstop in deeper leagues.
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena started July off right after a slow offensive June in Monday's 3-1 win over the Blue Jays. Pena went 1-for-3 with a solo home run. The 26-year-old crushed a fifth-inning Yariel Rodriguez hanging breaking ball into the left-field bullpen for his sixth long ball of the season. This was a welcome sight for fantasy managers, for while Pena's season stats look fine, he only hit .213 with five extra-base hits in June. Pena is now slashing .277/.320/.385 with 40 runs scored, 35 RBI, and 10 stolen bases in 340 plate appearances on the season. Fantasy managers shouldn't expect much power, but he has already almost reached a career-high in stolen bases.
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena continued his career year in Tuesday's victory versus the St. Louis Cardinals. Pena went 2-for-2 with a walk, a run and two RBI. He was also caught stealing in the contest. Pena was overlooked in many drafts this offseason after a rough 2023 campaign, but his 2024 season has made him look like one of the best draft picks for fantasy managers. On the season, Pena is now hitting .305 with five homers, 23 RBI and nine stolen bases. Pena should remain an everyday starter in all formats moving forward with his ability to help across the board.
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Minnesota Twins. This is nothing more than a routine rest day for the 26-year-old slugger. Fantasy managers should expect Pena to be back in the lineup following this game. In the meantime, Mauricio Dubon will start in his place at shortstop and bat seventh versus right-hander Pablo Lopez.
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena belted his fifth home run of the season on Friday in a 5-4 win over the Brewers. It was Pena's only hit of the ballgame, but it was a big one as it came off of Brewers starter Freddy Peralta and put the Astros ahead 5-4, which would go on to be the final score. After a disappointing year in the power department where he tallied just 10 home runs, Pena's power stroke is back. So far on the season, the 26-year-old is slashing .326/.364/.459 with a .363 wOBA and 138 wRC+. The former third-round draft pick has also chipped in six stolen bases and is on pace to set a new career high.
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena increased his hitting streak to five games as he tallied two hits in Thursday's victory over the Cleveland Guardians. Pena tallied his first hit of the game in the fourth inning with a ground ball to second base and then swiped second base but was unable to score. Later in the sixth, Pena ripped his first triple of the campaign to score Gabriel Arias. The shortstop would then score twice, courtesy of a Jon Singleton blast in the same frame and sacrifice fly in the seventh. Pena has a solid .333/.375/.467 line, and his underlying metrics suggest he could be in for a big summer with a .324 xBA. The former World Series MVP should be rostered in all formats and remains a solid DFS option.
Jeremy Pena Picks Up First Stolen Base Sunday Night
Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts and his first stolen base of the season in Sunday's 3-1 victory over the division-rival Texas Rangers. The 26-year-old Dominican infielder is off to a strong start in his third big-league season with the Astros, going 12-for-36 (.333) with two home runs, a double, six RBI, the one stolen base and four runs scored in 38 plate appearances over his first 10 contests. Last year was a disappointment for Pena in the power department with just 10 long balls after he slugged 22 round-trippers with 63 RBI in 136 regular-season games in his rookie campaign in 2022. He's stole 24 bags in his first two seasons but could easily set a career-high in that category in 2024 if he continues to get the green light on the basepaths.
Jeremy Peña
• SS
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Astros
