Saturday night’s middle game between the Atlanta Braves and the Cleveland Guardians certainly ended in disastrous fashion. With that being said, it could’ve gone off the rails much earlier than it did and it’s a credit to starting pitcher Martín Pérez that the Braves stayed in the game. Now granted, the lineup had absolutely nothing to offer against Guardians starter Parker Messick but they were at least hypothetically in the game thanks to Pérez’s efforts.
Martín Pérez spoke with the media following
the game and it’s safe to say that he’s feeling encouraged following his five innings of giving up just one run. Pérez spoke with the media and continued to reiterate that this is as good as he’s felt on the mound for a couple of years now. “Since I started throwing the ball this year, I feel better,” said Pérez. “Today was a good game, I was attacking the strike zone and I wasn’t missing too far from the [strike zone]. Every time when I go out there, I feel better. I’m going to continue to do my job and continue to give the team the chance to win many games.”
When he was asked about the last time that he felt this good, Pérez explained that it began with the tail end of last season during his stint with the White Sox. “[There’s no] pain on my arm,” stated Pérez. “I know that I can help the team. Finally, I feel grea and I don’t feel anything in my elbow. It was hard for me for the last two years to pitch with no pain. Sometimes [I’d] wake up for the next day about how I’m going to feel tomorrow and how I’m going to feel today. Now, I’m just enjoying what I’m doing because I feel great and I feel healthy. It’s a beautiful feeling to go out there and compete when you know you feel strong and better.”
“I think he’s been really good,” said Walt Weiss when he was asked about Pérez’s performances so far. “On top of [the two starts, he had] that relief appearance where he came in and saved our ‘pen. He’s been nice to have. He’s a veteran, he knows how to handle himself, he’s good in the clubhouse and and he’s good to have around.”
Pérez’s only real blemish on the night was giving up the homer to Jose Ramirez in the first inning. That was an inauspicious start to his outing and he dealt with traffic at times but he recovered to have a perfectly fine outing for being the fifth starter in this rotation. He was asked about how he adjusted in the second at-bat to strike out Ramirez and for Pérez, the adjustment was pretty simple. “I’m just trying not to miss my spot for the second time,” explained Martín. “He’s one of the best hitters in baseball and as a pitcher, it’s about keeping the batter off of his timing. During the first inning, I went to the changeup after the fastball…and he got me. I made sure that the second at-bat I was going to throw the pitch I wanted so I knew I could get him now.”
So while the game didn’t go Atlanta’s way once Martín Pérez exited the contest, it’s still encouraging that the Braves are getting value out of his contributions out of the fifth spot of the rotation. That role will certainly change once Spencer Strider gets healthy and later on down the road once the Braves get their full compliment of pitchers back but for now, Pérez is doing his part to make sure that this good start that the rotation is on continues to last for as long as possible. Hopefully we’ll see Chris Sale deliver a bounce-back start of his own later on tonight in order to keep the good times rolling.
