Despite Toughness, Royals Need To Shut Salvador Perez Down
Let's get this out of the way: Salvador Perez is one of the toughest players in Kansas City Royals history. His ability to play through minor injuries over the years has been second to none, and his status as an iron man of sorts is well-established in the league.
With that said, it's time for the team to shut him down for a while.
May 13, 2022; Denver, Colorado, USA; Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (13) doubles in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
A few weeks ago, Perez suffered a sprained left thumb that caused him to land on the 10-day Injured List. Some speculated that he could miss extended time with the ailment, although he returned 11 days later and was in the club's starting lineup upon activation from the IL. Since then, however, Perez has been nothing short of terrible at the plate.
In his last six games (25 plate appearances) Perez is slashing .043/.120/.043 with a minus-53 wRC+. You read that right: Perez has one hit since returning from the IL, and it came in his first game back in an outing that saw him step into the batter's box five times. In that same span, the seven-time All-Star is posting a 36% strikeout rate. He seems lost at the plate.
While an argument could be made that Perez's production (or lack thereof) is the only reason needed here, further context is necessary. Extended slumps are commonplace in baseball, after all. In a vacuum, this merely appears to be another one of those. Outside of that vacuum, it's easy to see that Perez's thumb is still bothering him — and Friday's game was a prime example of that.
In the Royals' original Friday lineup, Perez was listed as Brady Singer's starting backstop. As first pitch drew closer and closer, the club finally decided that rookie MJ Melendez would be better served to take that spot. Perez, whose catching hand just so happens to be the same one he nursed that injury on, was moved to the designated hitter spot. Multiple swings from him looked a bit unnatural on Friday night, although the 32-year-old told the media that it wouldn't take him out of the lineup moving forward.
May 16, 2022; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (13) blows a bubble in the dugout during the second inning against the Chicago White Sox at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
Perez is never going to take himself out of the lineup. It isn't in his blood, as he's the ultimate competitor. The Royals, on the other hand, should act in his best interest and shelve him for a while.
It wasn't too long ago that a thumb injury derailed Hunter Dozier's season. In fact, it was last year, and the Royals insisted that he'd bounce back and play better in 2022. It's been easy going thus far for Dozier, but it took him months before he finally felt like himself again towards the end of the 2021 campaign. The importance of the thumb in connection with the swing cannot be understated. If any organization recognizes that, it should be the Royals.
Furthermore, Perez has struggled this year in general — even without injuries like this one. He's not in the running for any home run crown, nor is he tasked with helping a contending team stay afloat. The Royals are one of the very worst teams in all of baseball, so playing their (normal) star player excessively isn't going to help them with anything other than achieving a worse 2023 MLB Draft position. The ascension of Melendez, as well as the possible promotions of first base prospects Vinnie Pasquantino and Nick Pratto being on the horizon, make one less bat to worry about a possible blessing in disguise.
This isn't to say that Kansas City should shut Perez down for the rest of the season, of course. The team should, however, consider giving him some additional time off. Playing sore, even if not completely injured, is clearly bothering him. Until that stops being the case, it isn't worth Perez taking the field every day and hoping for a different outcome despite nothing changing.
