Right-handed pitcher Freddy Peralta has been named American League (AL) Pitcher of the Month for September. This marks the second time a Rays pitcher has won the award this season, joining Drew Rasmussen’s award in June. It is also the third time in Peralta’s career he has been named Pitcher of the Month, winning two NL Pitcher of the Month awards with the Milwaukee Brewers in August 2025 and August 2023.
Peralta, 30, went 4-0 with a 0.96 ERA (28.0 IP, 3 ER), 23 strikeouts, nine walks, one home run,
a 0.89 WHIP, and two quality starts while holding opponents to a .165/.243/.216 (16-for-97) slash line over five starts in September. He paced AL pitchers in ERA, tied for the league lead in wins, ranked second in opponent slugging percentage, third in opponent batting average, fourth in opponent OPS, sixth in WHIP, and tied for ninth in innings pitched. The Rays won all five of his September starts.
Along with Chris Archer in July 2013, Peralta is the second pitcher in team history to win four games or more with a sub-1.00 ERA and a sub-1.00 WHIP in a calendar month. He was one of four AL pitchers this season to toss 28.0 innings in a month with a sub-1.00 ERA and a sub-1.00 WHIP, joining Toronto’s Dylan Cease (July), Rasmussen (June), and Los Angeles-AL’s José Soriano (March/April).
He became one of four Rays pitchers in franchise history to post a sub-0.90 WHIP with 28.0 innings or more across a month in an age-30-or-older season, joining Rasmussen (June 2026 and March/April 2026), Rich Hill (May 2021), and James Shields (September/October 2012 and August 2012). Throughout September, Peralta allowed three extra-base hits (two doubles, one home run), becoming the ninth Rays traditional starter (10x) to make five starts or more in a month and permit three extra-base hits or fewer, and the first since Griffin Jax in May 2026 (5 GS, 1 XBH).
This marks the 13th time in franchise history a Rays hurler has won AL Pitcher of the Month. The Moca, Dominican Republic native is one of 10 Rays pitchers to earn a monthly award, joining Rasmussen (June 2026 and August 2022), Taj Bradley (July 2024), Tyler Glasnow (July 2023 and April 2019), Hill (May 2021), Blake Snell (August and September 2018), Archer (July 2013), Jeremy Hellickson (May 2011), David Price (September 2010), and Scott Kazmir (May 2008).
After being acquired from the New York Mets on Aug. 2 in exchange for right-handed pitcher Gary Gill Hill, infielder Émilien Pitre, and outfielder Aidan Smith, the right-hander went 5-2 with a 3.25 ERA (55.1 IP, 20 ER), 43 strikeouts, a .208 (41-for-197) opponent batting average, and a 1.01 WHIP in 10 starts with the Rays compared to a 5-9 record, a 4.99 ERA (113.2 IP, 63 ER), 113 strikeouts, a .264 (120-for-455) opponent batting average, and a 1.48 WHIP in 22 starts to begin the season with New York-NL.
