Chris Perez is learning about life in the big leagues

In his first taste of the big leagues, Chris Perez is showing the St. Louis Cardinals that he's well-suited to be the team's future closer. Perez, 22, has been solid out of the bullpen in a setup role, recording four holds and 11 scoreless outings in his first 13 games. Perez talked with News-Democrat reporter David Wilhelm about his transition to the big leagues, his desire to be the Cardinals' closer and the benefits of being a member of a veteran bullpen.

Q: Is this a best-case scenario for you, considering it's your first trip to the big leagues?
A: You couldn't ask for more. I couldn't ask to be pitching any better. The coaching staff is showing confidence in me, putting me out there in close games. My second outing was a tie game in the ninth. I was able to get through that, and I keep gaining confidence every time out.

Q: Are you treating these hitters as if they're Triple-A or Double-A hitters?
A: That has to be your mindset. I trust my stuff, and so far, I know if I locate it good, not too many people are going to hit it. I'm trying to get ahead of the hitters and put them away, get ground balls and stuff like that and work down in the zone.

Q: Are you looking forward to the time when you are the ninth-inning guy? A: I'm just happy being up here right now. "Frankie" (Ryan Franklin) is our closer. He's there for a reason. He's pitching great, and he's got experience. I'm just here to pitch whenever they call me. If that time comes, maybe he's down or something and I'm up, I'm going to try and treat it the same way. You can't put extra pressure on yourself. That's when you start walking people. Hopefully, the day will come. When it does, I'm going to try to do my best.

Q: When your contract was purchased from Memphis, what went through your mind? A: I just thought it was a tremendous opportunity to come here and show them what I can do --whether it was for two weeks or a month or for however long. I wanted to put something good in their mind so if they do send me back down and something else happens, I'll be the first one up again. I just kept that mindset and tried to show them what I can do.

Q: Since you were the closer at Memphis, are you itching to get back into those save situations?
A: I'm just glad to be in the big leagues. The only difference between pitching the eighth inning and ninth inning is you get a save by your name. It's one of my ultimate goals --to be a closer in the big leagues. But as long as I'm here getting experience and pitching and we're winning games, I can't complain.

Q: How have you been able to go out there and maintain a cool head?
A: It's always easy to pitch when you're making good pitches. Luckily, I haven't run into any rough spots yet. My confidence is pretty high right now just because I've been going out and making good pitches. That could all change tomorrow. I could give up a home run or something and you're back to square one. When you're throwing your curveball and slider for strikes, it's easy to pitch.

Q: Do you think one of your keys is your aggressiveness?
A: Hitters can pick up on a guy that's tentative, a guy that's trying to miss the strike zone or trying to nibble. It's a huge advantage to come out firing. Sometimes that borderline pitch that they wouldn't swing at, they'll swing at because they know you're coming at them. It always seems to work that way. If they see you attacking them, they have to swing. It's definitely an advantage. Hitters don't like hitting 0-1 and 0-2, so that's even a bigger advantage if you can attack and throw strikes.

Q: Pitchers often say they want to respect hitters, but not fear them. Is that part of the way you go about it?
A: I don't really look at who the batter is. I look at where they are in the lineup. Obviously, the three, four and five hitters, you can't really make too many mistakes over the plate or they're going to hurt you. The seven, eight, nine guys, you can get away with a little bit more. But I know if I make my pitches, I can get pretty much anybody out. If I stay ahead of the hitters, it makes me even better.

Q: Tony La Russa doesn't talk about whether you'll be the closer here. He talks about when you'll be the closer. It may not be this year. Are you OK with that?
A: I can't complain. I'm in the big leagues at 22. That's something many people don't get the chance to do. I'm just playing every day. I could pitch the fifth inning. I couldn't care less. I'm in the big leagues and our team's winning --and I'm helping them win. Right now, it's great. My ultimate goal is to be the closer. I closed in college (University of Miami) and I closed in the minors. If that comes a month from now, a year from now or two years from now, I'll still be happy to just go out there and play.

Q: Did you see the stadium radar gun register you at 100 mph in your first outing?
A: Yeah, I saw that. I usually throw 94, 95, 96. I can make it up to 97, 98. I don't know about 100. That might have been off. I don't consistently throw there.

Q: What made you ready for this opportunity at such a young age?
A: Spring training. The big-league invite to spring training helped me a lot. Mentally, going up there against big-league hitters. I had some success, I had some failure. You learn from failure. I learned I needed to work on (getting) pitches down in the zone. I also had success, so that told me I could do it.

Q: Troy Percival said recently that you could really help yourself by observing a guy like Russ Springer. Have you been able do that?
A: Russ is great. Frankie's great. We've got (Ron) Villone here. Our whole bullpen's good. They've been talking to me a lot in the outfield, especially Spring Dog (Springer). He tells me I've got great stuff. Just go after (hitters). Even though they're in the big leagues, they still can't hit 98 (mph pitches) that good. ...
I couldn't be in a better bullpen. We've got guys who have won the World Series, been in the playoffs. Russ has played on six different teams. He knows what he's talking about. Twelve, 13 years in the game, he's doing something right. It's good to have those guys in your corner.

Q: Who's your favorite closer?
A: I like Joe Nathan. He doesn't get much recognition up in Minnesota, but he comes right after you and throws strikes and he has good offspeed (pitches). Every year, you look up and he's in the top four in saves. He doesn't show much emotion. He just goes about his business.

Q: You're pretty much doing what Nathan did, right? He was a setup guy, too, before becoming a closer.
A: That's something most closers do. Not too many guys go straight to the closer's role. There's just something about it. Basically, you have to prove to your manager that you can handle it. Another part of that is going through some struggles --having a tough game and coming back the next day. That's something else I have to show I can do --bounce back and have a short memory. That's the hardest part. That's the worst part. Your team battles its butt off, your starting pitcher goes six or seven and you go out there and pitch one inning and give it up. That's the worst, coming back into that locker room after that.

(bnd.com)