Rafael Pérez (baseball)
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Cleveland Indians — No. 53 | |
Relief pitcher | |
Born: May 15, 1982 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic |
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Bats: Left | Throws: Left |
Major League Baseball debut | |
April 20, 2006 for the Cleveland Indians | |
Selected MLB statistics (through 2007) |
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Win-Loss | 1-2 |
Earned run average | 2.22 |
Strikeouts | 77 |
Teams | |
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Rafael Pérez (born March 15, 1982 in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) is a left-handed relief pitcher for the Cleveland Indians in Major League Baseball. He was signed by the Indians as an undrafted free agent in January 2002.
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[edit] Minor League Career Highlights
2002
- Finished second in the Dominican Summer League with a 0.96 ERA
2003
- Named Appalachian League Pitcher of the Year playing for the Burlington Indians
- Led the Appalachian League in wins (9-3) and ERA (1.70)
2005
- 12 wins tied for 3rd in Indians organization
- 2.62 ERA in 29 combined appearances (22 starts) for Kinston and Akron
- Added to Indians 40-man roster in November
2006
- 2.81 ERA in 12 starts with Akron
- 2.63 ERA in 13 relief appearances with Buffalo
[edit] Major League Highlights
2006
[edit] 2007 season
Perez was not expected to be a major part of the Indians' major league club in 2007, but he surprised the Indians organization after he was called up from the team's AAA affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons, on May 28. Perez was initially slated for long relief, but after he demonstrated his ability to pitch in tight situations, he was inserted into a setup role alongside right-handed reliever Rafael Betancourt. The two setup men have been nicknamed Rafey Left and Rafey Right by local Indians fans. Perez, with his hard fastball and tight slider, quickly became one of the most dominant relievers in the league. As of September 15, Perez had posted a sparkling 1.41 ERA, over 57 1/3 IP in 40 appearances. He had a WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) of only .855, and has held left-handed batters to just a .107 batting average. ESPN analyst Peter Gammons called him "arguably the best left-handed reliever on the planet." His most dazzling statistic, however, may be the fact that in his slightly less than two years in the big leagues, he has allowed just one extra base hit to left-handed batters and has held those batters to under a .140 slugging percentage.
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
- MLB.com player info page
- The Baseball Cube player page