Padres Acquire LHP Martin Perez From Pirates
The San Diego Padres have acquired left-handed pitcher Mart¨ªn P¨¦rez from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for left-handed pitcher Ronaldys Jimenez, President of Baseball Operations and General Manager A.J. Preller announced today.
Over 16 starts for the Pirates this season, Perez has posted a 2-5 record with a 5.20 ERA (48 ER, 83.0 IP) and 63 strikeouts. In his last outing on July 24, Perez threw 6.0 shutout innings against the St. Louis Cardinals, surrendering just four hits. He has held opponents to 3 ER or fewer in 10 of his 16 starts this season (2.22 ERA, 14 ER, 56.2 IP), while allowing 34 ER in 26.1 IP (11.62 ERA) in his other six starts. He missed nearly a month of the 2024 season while on the injured list with a left groin strain (5/28-6/28).
A 13-year Major League veteran, Perez has gone 87-86 with a 4.48 career ERA (758 ER, 1523.2 IP) and 1,065 strikeouts in 304 games (259 starts) between the Texas Rangers (2012-18, 2022-23), Minnesota Twins (2019), Boston Red Sox (2020-21) and Pirates (2024). On June 28th at Atlanta, he made his 300th career Major League appearance, making him just the 15th active player to have made 300+ appearances and 250+ starts. Perez was selected as an American League All-Star in 2022 for the Rangers when he finished the season with a career-best 2.89 ERA (63 ER, 196.1 IP), which was the 8th-lowest qualifying mark in club history, and he was also a member of the Rangers¡¯ 2023 World Series Championship club.