CLEVELAND: It was not the kind of first impression any pitcher would want to make.
An overly amped up Chris Perez proceeded to hit not only the first batter he faced in his Indians debut on June 29, but the second as well.
Then he mixed in a walk. A wild pitch, too.
In what seemed like an eternity (but lasted just two-thirds of an inning), Perez gave up four earned runs and quickly earned the ire of more than a few already frustrated Tribe fans.
''This is what we traded Mark DeRosa for?'' was the thought of many of those fans.
Perez, who arrived in that trade with the St. Louis Cardinals, was supposed to help fix a bullpen that has been the focal point of this poor season for the Indians, not make it worse.
All parties involved believe that it was just an aberration.
The statistics seem to indicate as much. Consider that Perez hadn't allowed four runs in an outing his entire pro career (113 games spanning 179 innings).
''We need to knock the edge of his last (outing),'' Indians manager Eric Wedge said a few days later. ''I imagine next time we'll get him in a situation where there's no specific role, just get him out there and get an inning under his belt.''
That's exactly what happened four days later when Perez took the mound for the second time, limiting the Oakland Athletics to one hit in one shutout inning of work.
''That first outing was really an abnormality,'''Perez said. ''Usually, I come out and am really aggressive and work off my fastball, which is my bread and butter. Then I try and put hitters away with my slider.
''In that first outing, I was kind of shellshocked after the first two guys. The first guy I hit I was ahead of him 0-1 and the slider slipped out of my hand, and unfortunately hit him. The second guy, I kind of got up underneath the ball and it nicked his arm. After that, I was trying to feel for it. I wasn't aggressive and was trying to nip the corners.''
Despite his debacle of a debut, Perez's upside is intriguing. He's a young pitcher who turned 24 on July 1 and throws 95 mph consistently. That alone is an improvement in an organization void of many power arms.
''The arm's there, the stuff's there and (Perez has) got some experience,'' Wedge said. ''We just need to handle him accordingly until he gets comfortable over here.''
Now that Perez has begun to settle in, Wedge's next move is to figure out just where he fits in.
''I closed for 21/2 weeks last year with St. Louis,'' said Perez, a Tampa, Fla., native, who began the season at Triple-A Memphis before being promoted to the Cardinals on May 16.
''Ultimately, that's what I'd like to do. I like having the ball in my hand at the end of the game, with everyone up on their feet and pulling for you to get the last three outs. I feed off that. But I'm comfortable with any role in the bullpen.''
Perez had gone 1-1 with a save and a 4.18 ERA with the Cardinals this season. He had struck out an impressive 30 batters in just 232/3 innings but also had issued 15 walks.
Originally selected in the first round (the 42nd pick overall) out of the University of Miami in the 2006 draft, Perez was ranked by Baseball America as the Cardinals No. 3 prospect entering the season.
''Right now, I know I just need to come in here and get my feet wet,'' he said. ''But say, after eight or 10 good outings and they want to put me in the set-up role, I've done it before and I know I can handle it.''
Perez came to the Indians with an exemplary attitude, despite being traded from a sure playoff contender in the National League to a struggling last-place team in the American League.
''St. Louis is a great place,'' he said. ''And yeah, we were in first place. But at the same time, I have a great opportunity here to lock onto a role and be a part of turning things around for a club that was in the playoffs two years ago and still has a lot of those pieces here.''
A flurry of moves the past two weeks by General Manager Mark Shapiro has brought not only Perez, but a handful of other new arms to the Tribe bullpen.
''We're trying to figure out what these guys are capable of,'' Wedge said. ''We've got a new set of guys and we're trying to define some roles. We're just going to have to work with trial and error — that's where we are.''
That being said, Wedge is upbeat about the improvements his boss has made.
''I do like what we've done with our bullpen,'' Wedge said. ''I feel like we've got a chance to do something there.''
Which is good news for Perez, who knows it's not so much how you start that people will remember you most for, but how you finish.
(ohio.com)