Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Rafael Perez to start Minor-League rehab assignment
The Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Rafael Perez is scheduled to start his Minor League rehab assignment which will determine his potential return into the big league.
The 30-year-old Perez is currently injured with strained left latissimus muscle while his time of returning is now greatly interlinked with his rehab assignment.
On Sunday, Indians' general manager Chris Antonetti stated in the media that Perez will soon be able to return, but his return depends how his rehabilitation process goes.
Earlier, the Indians’ team manager Manny Acta had stated giving no possible timetable of his reliever’s return. However, he did state that Perez is certainly a great player and in the coming days, his potential return will be needed in the roster.
“Just like everything in life," Acta said, "You don't know how much you're going to miss somebody until they're actually not there."
"He's a very durable guy who has done a very good job for us," Acta said of Perez. "I think we have been able to notice missing him more because of the struggles Tony has had. He was a guy that when he was here, and either one of them were struggling, we could lean on the other guy up until the other guy came out of it."
Earlier when Perez’s injury took place, the Indians did not realise that it will keep him away from the field for that much time, but as soon as Perez’s reports arrived, they quickly placed him onto the 15-day disabled list. It was later decided that he must complete his rehab assignment in the Minor League to gain some momentum.
Perez, with 3.52 ERA, was pitching tremendously before getting injured.
On the other hand, now his team needs his play. The All-Star break has started and when this period is over, the Indians will like to go with full thrust and achieve at-least .600 winning percentage.
Already their position is quite consistent in the American League Central with 44-41 win-loss and .518 winning percentage, but still in order to get a potential playoff spot, they will be hoping for Perez’s services.
Tags: