There were plenty of people who thought Jess Todd (the player to be named later in the deal), would, in fact, end up being the more painful piece of the deal, as he had put up outstanding numbers at every stop in his pro career. Meanwhile, Perez was looked at as something of an enigma, and many were jumping off his bandwagon due to persistent control issues.
I did, however, have some questions about whether or not Perez was a good fit with this coaching staff; I wasn't at all impressed with their handling of him this season. There seemed to be some thought of trying to get Perez more on top of the ball, throwing downhill more, and staying more under control in his delivery. I thought that was the exact wrong approach to take with a pitcher like Perez, and I said as much on the first Future Redbirds Radio broadcast.
Since going to the Indians, Perez has been pitching extraordinarily well. His ERA stands at 3.86 in 14 innings, but that really tells only a fraction of the tale. His first appearance for Cleveland came on the 29th of June, just a day after joining the team, and it did not go well. Perez was hammered for four runs on two hits and a walk in just two thirds of an inning. He pitched again five days later against Oakland, and turned in a nice performance, giving up one hit in a scoreless inning. Four days later, he pitched against the White Sox, the team who had knocked him around in his Cleveland debut, and they did it to him again. Two thirds of an inning, two runs, three hits, including a double and a home run.
Since giving up those two runs on the 7th of July, Perez hasn't been scored upon. In that time, he has appeared in 11 games, covering 11 2/3 innings, and has allowed only three hits, while striking out 13. Best of all, Chris has managed to limit his walks, handing out only four free passes in that time frame. Control was always Perez's bugaboo; for now, at least, it looks as if he's found something that works.
