Astros' shortstop Jeremy Pena is out of the lineup for the second straight night due to illness as Houston faces the Baltimore Orioles at Daikin Park in game two of the series. Mauricio Dubon will start at shortstop for the second consecutive night.
However, Pena has markedly improved in the past 24 hours and is at the ballpark today, per MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart.
“He’s going to do some baseball activity and try to sweat some of that stuff off,” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “He’s a lot better today.”
Peña is still under the weather but is at the ballpark today.
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) August 16, 2025
"He's going to do some baseball activity and try to sweat some of that stuff off," Espada said. "He's a lot better today." https://t.co/GEdhLCQmAc
Pena felt “under the weather” before the series opener vs. Baltimore and underwent some tests, according to Espada. Houston could have used his bat in its 7-0 loss to the Orioles, whose starting pitcher Brandon Young had a perfect game through 7.2 innings until Ramon Urias recorded a hit—the Astros' only baserunner of the game.
Pena is batting .318/.373/.492 this season with 13 homers and 45 RBI in 93 games. He recently returned from the 10-day injured list, where he was placed on June 30 because of a small rib fracture on his left side.
Pena was activated at the start of the month and played in 11 straight games until he was sidelined this series. He’s hitting .289 with five extra-base hits and five RBI in August.
The Astros haven’t had luck with injuries this year, as it was announced today by McTaggart that All-Star closer Josh Hader is likely out for the remainder of the regular season because of a left shoulder strain.