Article: Martin Perez Now a Cut Above

[Ted Schwerzler]

During the offseason the Minnesota Twins signed Martin Perez to a one-year deal worth $4 million. They were able to add a team option for 2020, and the former Rangers top prospect appeared to be someone the front office intentionally targeted. Coming off a season with a 6.22 ERA and pedestrian supporting numbers, the fit looked like an odd one. Given Thad Levine’s familiarity with Perez and Derek Falvey’s pitching prowess, the outlier was a belief from the top. It certainly appears like that was well founded.Coming into 2019 Perez had a five-pitch mix featuring a fastball, sinker, changeup, slider, and a curveball. He flipped those offerings with velocities ranging from 78 mph all the way up to 93 mph. As a starter, things weren’t all that impressive in 2018, but late work out of the pen seemed to capture reason for future belief.

 

The Twins overhauled their coaching infrastructure this offseason and made a concerted effort to change how they both evaluated and implemented new ideas. Wes Johnson was brought in as the big-league pitching coach and has long been regarded as a velocity guru and someone well regarded at the top of the college ranks. A further implementation of Edgertronic cameras allowed more information to be captured during Spring Training, and guys like Josh Kalk and Jeremy Hefner were then able to turn it into actionable data. This process no doubt helped to influence one significant change for Perez.

 

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Having flirted with the idea previously, and in talking with his agent. Martin gave in and decided now was the time to introduce a cutter to his repertoire. Having never thrown the pitch in big league action previously, he is now using it one-third of the time in 2019. Scrapping the slider altogether, and halving the sinker usage, he’s prioritized his new weapon. Pushing his fastball velocity up two ticks to 95 mph, the cutter averages just under 90 mph and creates a nice pairing. Introducing something new like this, and being all in immediately, is indicative of trust and buy in for a coaching staff committed to your success.

 

On top of turning to a new offering, Perez is certainly feeling confident with the pitch. Looking at the count profile, he’s turning to the cutter early and often. Whether behind or ahead in the count, his cutter is being paired and tunneled with other offerings to consistently keep it present in the mind of hitters.

 

Download attachment: Martin Perez.png

 

It’s one thing to be excited about something new, but Perez also has reason to celebrate the results. Not only is his velocity a career high, but he’s generating a 10.6% whiff rate which is nearly 3% above his career average. He’s getting batters to chase more often, and he’s allowing contact less than at any previously point in his career. We’re only 34 innings into his Twins tenure but calling the work thus far anything but extraordinary would be selling it short.

 

Athletes are not robots and feeling positive momentum about such a significant development is evident of normal human emotion. Seeing Perez express gratitude following his outing against the Astros was hard not to read and immediately picture the smile beaming off his face. For a guy who has previously been highly regarded, never has seen it all come together, and now has reinvented himself to reach new heights, feeling on top of the world should be more than warranted.

 

 

There’s no telling how this story ends, or how the 2019 season progresses for Minnesota’s offseason acquisition. Right now, though, the narrative is Martin Perez has found a cutter that has him looking like an asset with unrealized and untapped potential. For the Minnesota Twins, it’s nice to see a redefined infrastructure and process bear fruit in such a welcomed form.

 

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[jimbo92107]

Not only is Martin Perez pitching great, but he's creating some very colorful bubbles!

[twinssporto]

Perez 2019 results: 20-9

 

Seems like a good year.  

[yarnivek1972]

I’d be concerned about a guy all of a sudden having a significant velocity bump in his late 20s. Late teens, early 20s MAYBE. In 1990, Scott Erickson was all of a sudden throwing his sinker 3-4 MPH harder than before and not surprisingly having greater success. We know the end of that story. By late June of 1991 he was toast and was never even close to that dominant again.

Edited May 3, 2019 by yarnivek1972

[PseudoSABR]

 

I’d be concerned about a guy all of a sudden having a significant velocity bump in his late 20s. Late teens, early 20s MAYBE. In 1990, Scott Erickson was all of a sudden throwing his sinker 3-4 MPH harder than before and not surprisingly having greater success. We know the end of that story. By late June of 1991 he was toast and was never even close to that dominant again.

I think that's a field too far given that there has been a lot of talk about the Twins instituting new techniques to increase velocity. 

Edited May 3, 2019 by PseudoSABR

[Pardon My Dinger]

Whatever happens from here on out, I think it’s pretty fair to say Pérez has already shattered his projected contribution to the team. So, that’s playing with house money. If his new approach is legit, and he remains a mainstay with this over-performing club...well, someone deserves a raise.

[Dman]

I never loved the signing but I was willing to give the FO the benefit of the doubt.  His spring training was not great and he was all over the place out of the pen to start the season.  At that point I figured he would be another bust that the Twins stuck with for too long.

 

The best I thought he could ever achieve is to survive as a fringe 5th starter. I never would have guessed he could have a game where he held the Houston lineup to zero runs through 8 innings.  I never thought he had that kind of potential at all.

 

Perez really impressed me with that outing.  I can see now that he can be so much more.  He can be part of the top of the rotation.  It would be awesome if he was part of the solution to making the starting pitching stronger.  Strong enough to compete with some of the better clubs.

[diehardtwinsfan]

Hope he keeps it up. That woudl be a huge boost. He certainly took it to the Astros the other day... and if he can do that to them... well he can do it to anyone.

 

This might be the making of a career year or breakout for him. Hope it is. 

[Linus]

I was one of the doubters. He has looked very good throwing way more strikes than his history would suggest. I will hold off on buying in until the league sees his cutter for a bit

[USAFChief]

 

I’d be concerned about a guy all of a sudden having a significant velocity bump in his late 20s. Late teens, early 20s MAYBE. In 1990, Scott Erickson was all of a sudden throwing his sinker 3-4 MPH harder than before and not surprisingly having greater success. We know the end of that story. By late June of 1991 he was toast and was never even close to that dominant again.

I don't remember Scott Erickson throwing harder. In fact, I saw him pitch for the UofA several times and if anything, he threw harder then.

 

What I do remember was TK leaving him in to try to complete his third consecutive complete game shutout at Boston in May 1991. He took a shutout into the 9th, but was clearly gassed, and while he did complete the game, he gave up three runs in the 9th, which wasn't the bad part. His arm was never the same after that game. 

[Vanimal46]

These kind of changes are being implemented league wide. The cutter is the new sinker/slider, and pitchers are throwing way more non-fastballs than ever before. I'm happy the Twins are keeping up with the latest trends.

 

Fangraphs posted a really good article about how batters are fighting back to the trends...

 

 

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/how-hitters-are-fighting-back-against-rising-strikeouts/

[John Kelsey]

The results haven't really been there in the majors which makes it easy to forget that he was once the #8 prospect in baseball at the end of the 2011 season: http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/prospects/watch/y2011/

 

Clearly the talent is there, just needed to be coached up a bit. 

[Monkeypaws]

 

The results haven't really been there in the majors which makes it easy to forget that he was once the #8 prospect in baseball at the end of the 2011 season: http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/prospects/watch/y2011/

 

Clearly the talent is there, just needed to be coached up a bit. 

Hah, nice find. Just after Trout and Harper, ahead of Machado, and at #16, our friend Jake Odorizzi(#24 Aaron Hicks, #28 Kyle Gibson, #36 Miguel Sano).

 

I liked this passage:

 

They said it: "The stats line hasn't been stellar, but we've had scouts at almost all of his starts and there has been a lot of progress as far as throwing strikes, attacking hitters and staying with his secondary stuff. The feedback from the scouts has been positive, and we're focused more on that than the stats lines." -- Rangers assistant GM Thad Levine on Perez's winter ball work

Destiny.

Edited May 3, 2019 by Monkeypaws

[yarnivek1972]

I don't remember Scott Erickson throwing harder. In fact, I saw him pitch for the UofA several times and if anything, he threw harder then.

 

What I do remember was TK leaving him in to try to complete his third consecutive complete game shutout at Boston in May 1991. He took a shutout into the 9th, but was clearly gassed, and while he did complete the game, he gave up three runs in the 9th, which wasn't the bad part. His arm was never the same after that game.

Erickson’s increased velocity is mentioned in the book about the 1991 season.

 

Also, Erickson’s ERA went down another half run after that start against Boston through a shutout in Yankee Stadium late in June. That’s when he started to turn into a pumpkin.

Edited May 3, 2019 by yarnivek1972

[cmoss84]

 

I’d be concerned about a guy all of a sudden having a significant velocity bump in his late 20s. Late teens, early 20s MAYBE. In 1990, Scott Erickson was all of a sudden throwing his sinker 3-4 MPH harder than before and not surprisingly having greater success. We know the end of that story. By late June of 1991 he was toast and was never even close to that dominant again.

I was 8 at the time, so I am probably completely wrong, but didn't he suffer an injury diving after a bunt that derailed him?

(I remember him mostly because my last name is Erickson and I have a cousin named Scott Erickson and always told people that).  

[Doomtints]

The 1991 Scott Erickson was an unstoppable force, but it came out of nowhere. Kelly called it a "fluke." That was one of the best pitching seasons I have ever seen.

 

Saying Erickson was never good after 91 isn't correct. He had some success in Baltimore and the Orioles overworked him WAY more than the Twins did in 91. Note that Erickson also led the NCAA in IP when he was in college.

 

For someone who "never pitched the same" after 1991, it's amazing that he had 51 complete games in his career (almost all after 1991, obviously) and a no hitter in 1994.

Edited May 3, 2019 by Doomtints