Catcher Roberto Perez is calling it quits. The 10-year MLB veteran announced his retirement in an Instagram post with a caption in both English and Spanish. The 37-year-old last suited up for the Giants in 2023.
Perez spent the majority of his decade-long tenure in the pros with the Guardians. He was selected by the organization in the 33rd round of the 2008 draft. The backstop made his MLB debut as a 25-year-old in 2014. Perez slugged a home run in his first game, taking Jim Miller deep in the 8th inning of a tight contest against the Yankees.
Cleveland leaned on Perez as a reliable backup option from 2014 through 2021. He first began tag-teaming the position with Yan Gomes. Perez would later share the role with Austin Hedges. The veteran topped 250 plate appearances just once in his career.
Between the seasons with Gomes and Hedges as the primary starters, there was a two-year stretch where Perez earned the majority of the playing time. He posted a career-high 449 plate appearances across 119 games in 2021. Perez popped 24 home runs and finished with a solid .239/.321/.452 slash line.
Perez maintained the lead role in the shortened 2020 season, but the results fell off a cliff. He hit just .165 with a single home run in 32 games. Led by Perez and Sandy Leon, Cleveland finished dead last with a .448 OPS at the position. Perez struggled to a .572 OPS in 2021 and departed via free agency at the end of the year.
While the offensive production was up and down, Perez’s glove work was phenomenal in Cleveland. He piled up 73 Defensive Runs Saved across nearly 4,000 innings behind the plate. Perez put together a masterpiece defensive performance in 2019. He posted 31 DRS and a 20 Fielding Run Value en route to his first career Gold Glove award. Perez went back-to-back in 2020, earning Gold Glove honors again in the abbreviated campaign.
The Pirates grabbed Perez to handle backstop duties in 2022. He bounced back at the plate, notching a 100 wRC+ with a couple of home runs through six weeks, but a hamstring injury ended his season in early May.
Perez landed with the Giants on a minor league deal the following year. He broke camp with the team, then the injury bug struck again. Perez went down with a rotator cuff strain in April and missed the rest of the season. He signed a minor league deal with Boston in December 2023 and appeared in a handful of Spring Training games with the organization.
We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Perez on his career and wish him the best in his future endeavours.
Photos courtesy of Wendell Cruz, Darren Yamashita, Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images
