Could Jeremy Peña be ready for Opening Day? As of now, it doesn't look like the door is completely closed, and he is reportedly still in play for Opening Day.
He may not be ready to fully return to game action, but he is reportedly throwing again and has been cleared to return to batting.
Peña suffered a finger injury while representing the Dominican Republic in preparation for the World Baseball Classic.
The game was between the Dominican Republic and the Detroit Tigers in Santo Domingo. He had to exit the game after three innings and was set to be re-evaluated to determine the severity of the injury.
He fielded a ground ball off the bat of Wenceel Pérez behind second base. He was about to make the throw to first for the out, but after the play, he looked down at his hand. The ball reportedly hit his fingernail, causing it to bleed.
He was able to stay in the game briefly and went up to bat, striking out in the bottom of the third. After that at-bat, he was removed from the game and had an X-ray.
After further evaluation, Peña’s injury has been confirmed as a fracture at the tip of his right ring finger.
Since there is still a possibility he could not be 100 percent for Opening Day, the question becomes: what happens if he is not ready to start, and how will the Astros adjust their roster?
Peña is the star shortstop, but luckily for the Astros, they have depth and versatile players they can mix in to keep the team competitive.
The first option would be Carlos Correa, though he was scratched from yesterday’s game against the Nationals due to neck stiffness. If Peña cannot start Opening Day, Correa is expected to move from third base to shortstop, giving Isaac Paredes an opportunity at third. If Correa is also unavailable, the Astros could turn to Nick Allen, a strong defensive player, or young prospect Brice Matthews, who has been showing serious potential during spring training.
While losing Peña for any amount of time is a blow for Houston, they have options. Between Correa, Allen, and Matthews, the Astros should be well-positioned to manage the position if he is unable to play. That being said, with just a few more days until Opening Day, Peña is not completely ruled out as a starter. The next few days will present a clearer picture on whether Peña is fully healed and ready to go to kick off the 2026 season.