Shedding?unnecessary motion key to Pe?a's goal as shortstop

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- The education of Jeremy Peña continues on the back fields of the Astros¡¯ spring complex, where the shortstop has been working to improve his defense with Tony Perezchica, the team¡¯s new third-base and infield coach and run-prevention coordinator.

Astros manager Joe Espada was ecstatic to pluck Perezchica away from the D-backs, where he was third-base coach from from 2017-24, and bring him to Houston to help the Astros improve defensively. Much of that centers on Pe?a, the 27-year-old shortstop who suddenly finds himself as the team¡¯s longest-tenured infielder with Jose Altuve headed to left field and Alex Bregman in Boston.

¡°Tony is a person that has a lot of knowledge about defense, and he¡¯s very passionate about defense,¡± Pe?a said. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m excited to work with him. He¡¯s a person that brings a lot to the team. He is always willing to work. He focuses on the little things and wants to perfect this art. Perfection¡¯s impossible, but we¡¯re going to shoot for it with Tony.¡±

Pe?a, who won the American League Gold Glove as a rookie in 2022, has regressed defensively the past two seasons. He also no longer has a Gold Glove winner at third base (Bregman won the award last year) and will have a new double-play partner at second base, so his defense will be more important than ever.

¡°He¡¯s always looking for ways to get better,¡± Espada said. ¡°That¡¯s the stronger part of his game, is his defense. Perezchica did notice some things about his defense, things that could make him more consistent. He¡¯s got a ton of range, so how can he finish some of those tough plays? Some things that Tony kind of figured out or pointed out to him, they¡¯re working at it.¡±

Pe?a said he¡¯s been working on staying more compact on defense and not making as many extraneous movements with his arms when he¡¯s fielding a ball. He¡¯s not getting to more balls than he used to, but he¡¯s getting to balls with more time, which will allow him to make more plays.

¡°I¡¯m loose, as in relaxed, but I¡¯m staying a little more compact, running to the ball with my arms kind of closer to my body instead of flailing them around everywhere,¡± Pe?a said. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m a person that I never see a ball I can¡¯t get to. ¡­ If we¡¯re a little more efficient on those balls that I think I can get to, it will be a little easier.¡±

A closer look at the numbers, as provided by colleague David Adler, shows how Pe?a¡¯s defense has slipped from his rookie season:

Pe?a¡¯s Outs Above Average by season:

• 2022: +7 OAA (T-10th among qualifying SS)
• 2023: +2 OAA (T-17th among qualifying SS)
• 2024: -2 OAA (T-29th among qualifying SS)

What it means: Pe?a dropped by five OAA from ¡®22 to ¡®23 and by four OAA from ¡®23 to ¡®24, meaning he went from one of the better-fielding shortstops to a below-average fielder.

Pe?a¡¯s arm strength has also decreased by season:

• 2022: 84.3 mph (T-22nd among SS, min. 100 throws)
• 2023: 83.6 mph (34th among SS, min. 100 throws)
• 2024: 80.5 mph (45th among SS, min. 100 throws)

What it means: Pe?a never had an elite arm at shortstop, but he was at least middle of the pack in ¡®22, and he now has among the lowest arm strength at the position.

Espada hopes improved efficiency on defense will help Pe?a regain his Gold Glove form.

¡°There are things you get away with when you¡¯re as talented as he is, but if you want to consistently continue to improve every year, those are little things we can improve on,¡± he said.

It was a year ago that Pe?a was working on getting more efficient with his swing in an effort to regain his power stroke. After posting a .705 OPS with 10 homers in ¡¯23, Pe?a slugged 15 homers last year and slashed .266/.308/.394 (.701 OPS) with a career-high 70 RBIs.

He continues to work on his offense, but defense remains his calling card.

¡°This game is about improvement,¡± Pe?a said. ¡°I¡¯m going to try to go out there and build off last year and put together a more consistent season and more consistent approach. Like I said, just keep building and keep getting better every single year.¡±