The odds of Carlos Correa leaving the city of Houston are growing. The player seems to want a lot more than the roster offers.
The big question, therefore: who will replace him at shortstop. Fox Sports’ Jordan Shusterman digs into the subject.
once the lockout ends (🤞😬), all eyes will be on where Carlos Correa lands. if he does indeed leave Houston, who’s gonna play shortstop for the defending American League champs? for @MLBONFOXI ran through an exhaustive list of 30 possible candidates:https://t.co/uzWkmib4GU
— Cespedes Family BBQ (@CespedesBBQ) February 25, 2022
As a joke, he wondered if Correa’s brother, JC, was an option to replace him. It would be really funny, but it’s not going to happen. Yes, JC maintained good stats, but it was in the A.
Moreover, he is changing his position. He uses Martin Maldonado’s glove to become a receiver. Over the past few years, he’s moved up the Astros’ prospecting roster, but forget him at the team’s shortstop in 2022.
Other inexpensive options are available to the team. Marwin Gonzalez, Jed Lowrie and Jonathan Villar could come to help.
But the one most likely to start the 2022 season at shortstop is young Jeremy Pena.
Drafted in the third round of the 2018 draft, Pena has what it takes to succeed in the big league. What made him a name in the first place was his glove. He has always been an exceptional defensive player. His batting wasn’t great, but he added muscle mass, earning him a big leap as one of MLB’s top shortstop prospects.
The former player’s son, Geronimo Pena, was in the team’s reserve squad during the last playoffs. He didn’t play, but he saw what it was like to be a pro in MLB.
Subsequently, he returned to the Dominican Republic, in the winter league, and was one of the best players in Estrellas Orientales.
In short, Jeremy Pena is most likely to replace Correa, but don’t dismiss the names of Trevor Story (free agent), Ketel Marte and Amed Rosario too quickly.
