No rhyme. No reason. But I need a first post, and I can't think of a better first-post topic than who I want to see on my All-Peña Team. From Alejandro to Willy Mo to Tony to Tony to all the no-namers inbetween, a team of Peñas is undoubtably a force to be reckoned with.
Alright, everybody. Hands in the middle... on three...
1, 2, 3... Peña Power!!
Catcher: Well OBVIOUSLY it's going to be Tony Peña. Few have played over 1900 games behind the plate, and fewer still have done it with the patented Peña 'stache.
First Base: Carlos Peña is havin' himself a mighty fine year (23 homers, .289 average, 1.01 OPS, and a stolen base to boot!) but since he plays in Tampa Bay few seem to notice. Peñas, however, are used to being overlooked. It's part of what makes a Peña a Peña.
Second Base: Roberto Peña (nicknamed "Baby") was more comfy at shortstop, but he played enough games at second to be considered a safe backup there. He wasn't so sure with his bat, as his .245 career average will attest to.
Shortstop: Tony Jr. is having a better year with his bat (.284, 17 doubles) than he is with his glove (16 errors in 93 games), but he plays for the Royals, so all is forgiven (or at least explained). Also, in this mess of Peñas, it was only inevitable that there'd be some relations here.
Third Base: Bert Peña was primarily used as a shortstop, but for the sake of this line-up I had to go A-Rod on him and scoot him to third where, in 10 mid-1980's games for Houston, he committed no errors.
Left Field: Geronimo Peña was a second baseman for several years with the Cardinals, but I had to stick him way out in left field for the sake of filling spots. In 1991, in four left field games, he caught six fly balls and committed no errors.
Center Field: Elvis Peña had himself a couple big league cups of coffee in 2000 and 2001. Though brought up as an infielder, he was last seen playing outfield for the Long Island Ducks in the Atlantic League.
Right Field: Wily Mo is a fielding liability, but give him a hundred games and he'll give you 20-25 home runs and a couple key hits. What's remarkable is that he's the only Peña with any real outfield experience.
Starting Pitcher: Juan Peña was a sweet pitching prospect in the Red Sox organization. When he was finally called up to the majors in 1999 he struck out 15 batters in 13 innings, allowed just one earned run, and won both of his starts. Unfortunately he quickly came down with shoulder problems, then wrecked his elbow, which caused him to miss all of 2000. He bounced around the minors after that and ended his pro career with Nashua of the Atlantic League in 2004.
Middle Relief: Tony Peña, no relation to Tony or Tony, is currently a middle-relief man for Arizona, though periodically he'll be called upon to close a game. He's sporting a 2.09 ERA this season and strikes out twice as many as he walks.
Closer: Alejandro Peña began his career as a pretty good starting pitcher, but he proved to be a dang good closer as well, converting 13 straight save opportunities with the Braves in 1991. He finished his career with a highly respectable 3.11 ERA.
Manager: Tony gets dual credit for being both a reliable catcher and an adequate manager (not just anybody can lead the Royals to an over-.500 record). But this isn't Kansas City, and I'd like to see what skipper Tony could do with a team full of killer Peñas.
Honorable Mention/Bench:
Brayan Peña - If catcher Tony needs a day off, Brayan would make a great second-string. A seldom used catcher for Atlanta, he has yet to commit a Major League error. He struggles with that Mendoza line though, so skipper Tony needs to be careful where he bats him.
Ramon Peña - Tony's brother and Tony's uncle, Ramon is mostly here by associations. In eighteen big-league innings with Detroit in 1989 he closed six games (no saves), allowed twelve earned runs, struck out twelve, and then disappeared.
Orlando Peña - Like Alejandro, Orlando began as a decent starter and finished his career as a good closer. In 1963 he had a 12 - 20 record for the KC Athletics. In 1970, after a couple seasons in the minors, he was picked up by the Royals as a batting practice pitcher, but Pittsburgh felt he was good enough to pitch real games for them and signed him that summer.
Jesus Peña - The holiest of Peñas, for obvious reasons. In two big-league seasons he struck out 40, walked 42, and had a 5.21 ERA.
What surprised me in my Peña research is discovering how many Peñas are/were light-hitting infielders. Peñas, it seems, are not built for the wide open spaces. And though they may appear mediocre, a team full of this many scrappers (well, Wily Mo excluded) is sure to come through with a win somehow.
