*Photo from Fox 8*
After they had dealt Jacob Stallings to the Miami Marlins, the Pittsburgh Pirates had a problem. They had zero catchers on the 40 man roster. Well, problem solved now. The Pirates and C Roberto Perez have agreed to a one year, $5 million deal, according to an announcement made by the team.
Compared to Stallings, Perez is a very similar player defensively, he's a backstop powerhouse. He took home AL catcher gold glove awards in 2019 and 2020. His 7.8 defensive WAR is more than double his 2.9 offensive WAR. He also has elite arm strength, having thrown out 71 percent of potential base stealers in 2020, his last fully healthy season. He is a downgrade hitting wise, but his defense will still be rock solid.
Pirates GM Ben Cherington said of adding Perez that "In Roberto, we are adding an elite defender who is able to effectively handle our pitching staff and further aid in its development. He is known to be a great teammate and fierce competitor, and we look forward to having him in a Pirates uniform."
In 2021 with the now former Indians, Perez was limited to just 44 games due to injuries. In those 44 games, he had a .149 batting average and a .564 OPS, hitting 7 home runs and driving in 17 runs. In 32 games across the short 2020 season, Perez hit one home run and 5 RBI, with a measly .480 OPS, playing a little over half the games.
Across 8 big league seasons, all with Cleveland, Perez has a lifetime .206 batting average and .657 OPS, slugging .360 and hitting 53 home runs, driving in 184 in 490 regular season games. In 21 career playoff games, Perez has a .220 batting average and a .774 OPS, with 4 home runs and 10 RBI across 3 seasons of playoff baseball.
The interest in Perez from the Pirates was based on where he came from. The Indians have long been a team that has excellent player development, especially when it comes to the pitching staff, as they are seemingly rolling out new aces every single year. Perez, in his 8 seasons in Cleveland, got to work with a lot of stars, and the Pirates feel he can bring that experience to Pittsburgh, and help their pitching staff develop.
Cherington said of Perez's roots that "He’s coming from an organization that has done a great job and one that we admire, in terms of its pitching development and pitching infrastructure. He's been a part of that for a long time. Certainly caught some great pitchers there. We like a lot about that part of his game."
Perez is set in stone to be the starter, because of all his acumen, and he's also the only 40 man roster catcher on the team. There are a few internal backup candidates, such as Michael Perez and James Ritchie, but Cherington did say they would also explore outside options to fill the role.
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