Eury Pérez goes five in victory over Nationals

Pérez was masterful in this one. He allowed his first base runner in the fourth inning on a one-out walk to Matt Olson, but took a no-hitter into the top of the sixth inning. Sean Murphy would end any hopes of a no-no with a leadoff single to start the sixth frame, but Pérez would force a ground-ball double play in the following at-bat before getting Ronald Acuña Jr. to hit into a ground ball of his own to end the inning. Pérez would need 15 pitches to make the final three outs, as the righty closes out the game and his 2026 season in style. Pérez ends the year with an 8-11 record and a 3.91 ERA.

What is going on here? Alcantara leads the league with 213 innings pitched and weirdly, two have come in relief over the past week. With a save in each, Alcantara also became the first pitcher to alternate four outings with a start going at least five innings and a save since the save became an official stat in 1969. The first of those saves seemed like an act of desperation by the Marlins amidst bullpen issues and at the time, they were still alive in the playoff race. Now, they’re eliminated and still tried this for a second time. Since Eury Pérez has also come out of the bullpen in the past week, this feels like some sort of experiment. Regardless, these two surprising saves from Alcantara could have swung a few fantasy leagues.

Pérez had a stretch in August in which he allowed one earned run in 18 innings, but in five starts since, he’s given up 24 earned runs in 21 1/3 innings, raising his ERA from 3.17 to 4.17. He’s going to be a tough pitcher to rank next year, given his lack of consistency. He’s due to face the Braves next weekend, but it wouldn’t be overly surprising to see him get scratched.

All of the damage came via a massive home run from Josue De Paula in the fourth inning. He struck out five and walked a pair while inducing 13 swinging strikes in 96 pitches. This one was better than his previous three outings, both in terms of his velocity and control. Still, due to his workload, he feels like a bit of a dice roll in fantasy moving forward. The red-hot Padres are up next.

Pérez has now allowed 18 runs (16 earned) on 21 hits in 11 2/3 innings in his last three starts. Those starts have come against the Nationals, Royals, and Mets. For the second straight game, Pérez simply couldn’t find the zone. He threw just 44 percent of his pitches for strikes after throwing just 42 percent in his last outing. The four-seamer was really the only pitch he could consistently throw for strikes, so even though he had a 13 percent swinging strike rate and had five strikeouts, he also walked three and was simply too ineffective. He’s up to 140 innings on the year after throwing 95 last season, so perhaps he’s dealing with some fatigue. Regardless, he’s tough to trust against the Dodgers this weekend.

The Royals jumped all over Pérez for a five-run first inning in this rough start. It started poorly when Carter Jensen hit a lead-off home run and then Pérez allowed another home run and two doubles on the way to that crooked number. Things didn’t get much better after that as he struggled to command each of his fastball and sinker while his slider was inconsistent. Also, his velocity was down by about one mile per hour across the board, which is always scary this time of year. He’s scheduled for a two-start week against the Mets and Dodgers coming up.

Pérez was getting whiffs and limiting hard contact — he only had three hard-hit balls allowed all game — but he simply couldn’t command his pitches. He walked three straight Nationals to lead off the third, struck out the next two, then unraveled with a combination wild pitch/throwing error that scored two runs and a 445-foot Brady House homer. Nothing about this screamed avoiding Pérez in his next start against the Royals, he’s just been prone to this kind of game at times this year.

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.