Wenceel

Perez

Pérez has been good since coming off the IL, slashing .296/.346/.648 in 22 games with six home runs and 13 RBI. Pérez has seen gains in his exit velocities and is pulling the ball in the air more than he did in his rookie season. With Matt Vierling sidelined, Pérez has become the regular right fielder for the Tigers and is worth adding in deeper formats.

Carpenter finds himself on the bench for the third straight contest with lefty Andrew Heaney taking the ball for Pittsburgh. He also took a seat with Bailey Falter toeing the rubber on Tuesday and Reds southpaw Wade Miley drawing Sunday’s starting assignment. It’ll be Wenceel Pérez handling right field for the third consecutive game.

Perez got the Tigers on the board in this one with a 384-foot (101.0 mph EV) blast off of Bailey Falter in the second inning that gave the Tigers a 2-1 lead. He gave them the lead once again in the sixth inning with an RBI triple off of Carmen Mlodzinski that plated Riley Greene. The 25-year-old outfielder has done nothing but hit since returning from the injured list, slashing a robust .316/.355/.702 with five homers and 10 RBI in his first 62 plate appearances.

It appears to be just a routine night off for the 25-year-old outfielder, though the timing is odd with a right-hander on the mound and after Meadows slugged his first home run of the season during Thursday’s victory over the Orioles. Wenceel Perez will start in his place in center field and will bat sixth for the Tigers against Nick Martinez and the Reds on Friday evening.

Perez has been mostly an everyday player since his return from the injured list, but he’ll get a breather in this one. Jahmai Jones will function as the team’s designated hitter and bat leadoff against left-hander Keegan Akin. Akin will function as an opener for the Orioles on Thursday evening.

The presence of young lefty Cade Povich is a factor, but it’s worth noting that Carpenter has been battling a hamstring issue recently and was lifted from the late stages of Sunday’s series finale for precautionary reasons. Wenceel Pérez will patrol right field on Monday night in his absence. It’ll be interesting to see if he’s back in Detroit’s lineup when they face right-hander Zach Eflin on Wednesday evening.

Pérez struggled this spring before going down with a back injury and played in just six rehab games, four of them in A-ball, before being activated last week, so weren’t expecting much here. However, he’s opened up 6-for-19 with two homers and two doubles. He’s not a mixed-league option, but maybe he won’t lose as much playing time to Parker Meadows as previously seemed likely.

Meadows is in center field and leading off on Monday night against the White Sox in his highly-anticipated season debut. It’ll be interesting to see where he consistently bats in the order; he figured to be the Tigers’ leadoff man against righties before getting hurt this spring and missing the first two months with a nerve problem in his arm. For now, though, he’ll probably hit lower in the order on occasion, and he’ll likely sit against some lefties. Wenceel Pérez and Javier Báez will both likely lose playing time with Meadows back, but the Tigers will still do playing of mixing and matching. Meadows should eventually be helpful in mixed leagues, but it might take a little while as he works to reestablish himself.

This feels like a routine day off for Báez, but it’s worth noting because Wenceel Pérez is starting in center field for the second straight day since coming off the IL. Báez played third on Tuesday, but it seems like he may need to fill a utility role to stay in the lineup, especially with Parker Meadows also nearing a return. Báez could play third base and second base going forward, and also fill in the outfield when they give some of the starters off days.

Pérez was activated from the injured list prior to Tuesday’s game after missing the first two months of the season due to a back issue. He launched the third pitch that he saw from Logan Webb for a 351-foot (100.5 mph EV) solo shot that increased the Tigers’ early lead to 2-0. It proved to be the difference in the ballgame. He struck out in each of his other two plate appearances in the game, finishing the night 1-for-3. Expect him to see fairly regular action in the Tigers’ outfield with Matt Vierling (shoulder) shelved once again.