Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena said he does not think doing an in-game interview had any impact on a misplayed infield pop-up that occurred during the team’s loss to the New York Mets on Friday, per Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle.
Pena was mic’d up for a live interview on the Apple TV+ broadcast in the bottom of the second inning on Friday when the Mets' Jeff McNeil hit a pop-up to the left side of the infield. Pena and third baseman Alex Bregman converged but neither player called for the ball, and it ended up dropping between them for a single.
“Not really,” Pena said Saturday when asked if being mid-interview affected the play. “It was just bad communication between both of us. I feel like I should have taken charge. It’s a tougher play for him backpedaling. I have a better angle on the ball. So, it was on me.”
Pena had just finished answering a question about Jose Altuve before McNeil’s pop-up. The broadcast was silent as the play unfolded and for about 15 seconds afterward before Peña was asked to describe the play.
The Astros' shortstop said that it marked the first time he has taken part in an in-game interview and that he thought it was “pretty cool.”
The Astros have bounced back after a slow start
Everyone just expected the Astros to be contenders yet again in 2024. After all, they have been one of the top teams in baseball since 2017, making seven straight American League Championship Series appearances, four World Series appearances, and winning a pair of championships. But getting back to the postseason, at the very least, looked like a streak that was going to come to an end just last month.
After the first week of the 2024 season, the Astros had already fallen to 2-5. Before the month was out, a sweep by the Chicago Cubs put them at 7-19 and off to their worst start in 55 years. That first month's worth of games put them at 10-19 and then they just barely reached a winning record in May, going 15-14.
Going back to the beginning of June, the Astros have posted the second-best record in the MLB at 14-7 (.667). Only the Mets have a better winning percentage (.700) at 14-6. But that record is better than the Philadelphia Phillies (13-9), Los Angeles Dodgers (14-8), and New York Yankees (12-10), three of the best teams in all of Major Leage Baseball.
The Astros are currently on a lengthy hot streak after just sweeping the Baltimore Orioles, winning six straight and eight out of their last 10, which puts them in second place in the American League West at 39-40, five games back of the Seattle Mariners. That also puts them just 3.5 games back of a Wild Card spot.
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