Pérez feels great and might start on Wednesday

Pérez allowed only two hits, and he was able to whiff five in another scoreless outing for the 23-year-old talent. That’s not to say that he didn’t have to deal with traffic; Pérez walked five in the outing, but he was able to keep those free passes from crossing the plate. His ERA is now 3.23 on the season, and that number is more impressive when you consider it was 4.60 at the end of May. He’s back on the bump Saturday in his scheduled start versus the Nationals.

He struck out seven. Pérez had a 4.60 ERA in 12 starts before suffering a leg injury at the end of May. Since his surprisingly quick return four weeks later, he has a 2.00 ERA in nine turns, though this was just his third win during the span. He’ll face the Reds on Sunday.

All of Pérez’s strengths and weaknesses were on display in this tantalizing start. His nine strikeouts matched a season-high and his 18 swings-and-misses were one shy of the same feat. He forced at least three whiffs with four different pitches and his whole repertoire looked nasty. Yet, the command of his secondary stuff wavered here and he didn’t trust them enough in when he needed to. Case and point, three of the four runs he allowed came in the second inning. He allowed three hits and a walk that frame and between all four plate appearances, he threw two combined breaking balls. Part of that is because some of those hitters were left-handed, but he went away from his changeup too quickly during a nine-pitch battle against Ozzie Albies that ended in a walk and started the rally. Nevertheless, Pérez has been on a tear since coming off the injured list in late June with 49 strikeouts, 14 walks, and a 2.30 ERA across 47 innings. He’s lined up for a two-start week coming up against the Pirates and Reds.

The 23-year-old right-hander piled up six strikeouts on the evening while issuing a pair of walks. He kept the Mets off the board through the first five innings until Francisco Lindor smacked an RBI single in the sixth. Lindor then scored later in the inning on an error. Pérez generated 16 swings and misses on 97 offerings in the contest — five on his slider — while posting a CSW of 30 percent. He’ll bring a 3.44 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and a 112/40 K/BB ratio (104 2/3 innings) into Wednesday’s matchup against the Braves in Atlanta.

Pérez tossed a scoreless first, stranded two runners in the second, then gave up a pair of runs on a walk, a hit batter, and two hits in the third. He settled in for three more scoreless frames before giving up one more run on a double and a sacrifice fly in the seventh. Pérez would complete the seventh, marking three straight starts of at least six innings. The 23-year-old right-hander will take a 3.56 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and a 106/38 K/BB ratio across 98 2/3 innings into a start against the Mets in New York on Thursday.

Pérez was on his way to getting the win, but Pete Fairbanks got in the way and allowed a three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth. It was still an excellent effort for the 23-year-old that saw him whiff nine batters and allow just one hit; two starts after he threw seven perfect innings against the A’s. This scoreless affair lowers Pérez’s ERA to 3.53, and there’s a very good chance that figure will be lowered when he squares off against the Padres next weekend.

Pérez loaded the bases with no outs in the first inning, then escaped the jam with a strikeout and ground-ball double play. He settled in for two more scoreless frames before giving up a pair of runs on three hits in the fourth. Pérez gave the Marlins two more scoreless innings, ending his day after six with six strikeouts. The 23-year-old right-hander has pitched incredibly well over his last six starts, giving up five runs over 33 1/3 innings. He’ll enter the All-Star break with a 3.78 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, and a 95/34 K/BB ratio across 85 2/3 innings.

Well, this one won’t be controversial at all. The Marlins made the decision to pull Pérez at 92 pitches despite those seven perfect frames. The decision — from a baseball perspective, at least — almost immediately backfired, as Lake Bacher had the opposite of a perfect game while giving up five runs without getting an out. The controversy aside, Pérez was sensational; striking out eight and allowing just three baseball that registered as hard contact. Assuming all is ok, he’ll be back on the bump against the Guardians over the weekend.

Pérez served up a solo homer to Mickey Moniak in the first inning. He settled in nicely, holding the Rockies without another run into the sixth, scattering one more hit and four walks. Pérez generated an impressive 19 whiffs to strike out eight batters. The 23-year-old right-hander hasn’t missed a beat in his two starts off the injured list, giving up just one run in each. He’ll take a 4.21 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, and an 81/32 K/BB ratio across 72 2/3 innings into a start against the Athletics in Sacramento on Sunday.

In Pérez’s first start since coming off the injured list, he struck out one and didn’t walk a single batter while throwing 65 percent of his pitches for strikes. Obviously, posting just a six percent swinging strike rate isn’t what you’d like to see, and much of that came down to the command of his sweeper in two-strike counts. The velocity and movement of most of his pitches looked exactly like what we saw before the injury. He did lose some extension on his secondaries, but that can change game-to-game based on the mound, so we wouldn’t read too much into that. His sinker command could have been better, and that’s something to look for in his next start, but he got up to 68 pitches in his one and should be back up over 80 pitches in his next start against the Rockies in Coors.