Saturday, August 02

CHICAGO – Martín Pérez was given the option of going to Arizona when his left flexor tendon strain was diagnosed, leaving him out of action since departing a start with discomfort on April 18 in Boston.

But Pérez had no plans of doing his injury rehab at Camelback Ranch in Glendale. The 14-year veteran wanted to stay with the White Sox and help wherever he could, even if it wasn’t delivering pitches off the mound.

“I want to be here around the guys. I want to be around the manager in this process. I want to be there for my teammates and my coaches and try to support as much as I can,” Pérez told MLB.com Monday at Rate Field, prior to the start of Chicago’s seven-game homestand. “Especially with the starters.

“I’m just trying to tell them all my experience and kind of situations I’ve been in and what helped for me in that time. The good thing is they want to get better, and they listen. That means it gives me extra motivation, because I know I keep talking to them and they are going to listen.”

During a three-game sweep by the Orioles at Camden Yards this past weekend, Pérez was not with the team, although he has been on the road since the injury. But his presence was felt.

Davis Martin, who has become a steady presence in the White Sox rotation, allowed four runs over six innings in a Saturday setback while striking out three and walking one over 82 pitches (55 strikes). It was a better outing than the numbers indicated, with two home runs producing three runs.

Martin’s postgame comments featured a shoutout to Pérez.

“Oh yeah. He’s very much a vital role in all our daily routines, especially at home,” Martin said. “A lot of credit goes to Martín.

“He’s been in my ear about how you get guys out early, when you are behind, when you are ahead. You don’t have to punch everybody out to get deep into games and have successful outings.”

Jonathan Cannon, who started and suffered the loss while working through some back stiffness in Monday night’s 13-1 setback to a Detroit squad featuring the best record in the Majors, quipped about dedicating to Pérez every strikeout he gets via backdoor cutters. He also mentioned talking through outings with Pérez all the time.

“He’s still very much there behind the scenes and everything. He's definitely been a big help,” Cannon said. “With him, especially now, he doesn’t throw nearly as hard as he used to throw. He’s got to be a pitcher who changes speeds.

“It’s just listening to him talk to how he changes speeds and tunnels pitches, and the sequences he uses to set certain things up. It’s been very helpful for me to hear how he thinks through everything. The sequencing he’s showed me and how to read what guys are trying to do, it’s a very intellectual approach to the game.”

Pérez was brought in during this offseason on a one-year, $5 million free-agent deal, with a $10 million option for 2026. His knowledge passed on to these starters was on display from early in Spring Training, whether it was talking in the clubhouse or giving bits of advice during or after a side session.

That sort of assistance is appreciated by manager Will Venable, who won a World Series title with Pérez and the Rangers in 2023.

“Yeah, I love it. And that's what you get with Martín,” Venable said. “We saw how valuable that was while he was pitching, and he's continued to have a presence in the clubhouse and help these guys. We wanted to make sure that he was still around.”

Updating his present physical condition as “good, getting there,” Pérez also acknowledged he doesn’t know how long his recovery will take. For now, he’s assisting even beyond the numbers and analytics.

“Between those lines, it’s not easy to play baseball. So why are we going to make it harder?” Pérez said. “Trust your stuff. Go out there and compete. At some point, you are going to find your way and you are going to get a good result.

“Some guys, from the start, they always do good. Not everybody has that same luck. Like I said, they want to get better. They want to be good pitchers and good people. It gives me more motivation to be here with them around and help them with anything they need from me.”

• It should be entertaining to see Jac Caglianone in game action for the Royals this weekend. He hit a massive home run against the White Sox in Surprise during Spring Training and has been showing off that similar sort of immense power ever since.

• Oriole Bird stood two people over from me in the Camden Yards press box late in Saturday’s game, interacting with the crowd and the media. I looked at my computer momentarily to type a paragraph or two, and when I looked up, the Orioles mascot was standing near the Orioles dugout. I ask again: Great sprint speed or more than one Oriole Bird?

• I was very sad to read of Loretta Swit’s passing. She was tremendously talented as Major Margaret Houlihan on M*A*S*H, which is one of the best shows in television history. There actually wasn’t a bad character on that classic.

• A great deal of anniversaries took place over the past week or so: the last episode of Cheers, the last Late Show with David Letterman and Brent Seabrook’s overtime goal to beat the Red Wings in Game 7 of the NHL’s Western Conference finals on May 31, 2013. A bunch of us were at Harry Caray’s at the time, celebrating the great career of Dave Van Dyck. But let’s not forget the nine-year anniversary of Matt Albers’ extra-inning double and eventual game-winning run scored on June 1, 2016, at the Mets. A startling in-game moment, followed by tremendous postgame quotes from the White Sox reliever.

“He just continues to search at the plate. He’s very committed to working hard pregame, committed to adjustments, where he’s trying to lower the leg kick, trying to get in the ground and be on time. He’s going about it the right way, he’s just a little bit lost out there.” – Venable on Luis Robert Jr.

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