Mike Matheny Praises ‘Warrior’ Salvador Perez Despite IL Stint

The Kansas City Royals lost the first game of their day-night doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday, and they also lost their star catcher in the process.

After being pulled from the game with the bases loaded in the seventh inning, Salvador Perez underwent some imaging and tests on his left hand. It was later determined by the club that the seven-time All-Star had a left thumb sprain and would be going on the 10-day Injured List, effective immediately. When speaking to the media postgame, Royals manager Mike Matheny walked everyone through the club's eventful evening. 

"We've been very clear that we keep him as a part of the decision," Matheny said. "Fortunately, we had our hand specialist in here today and he was able to go get the pictures and come back and give us the report, then kind of give us a 'hey, this is how this could go.' So, when that time comes for him to potentially come off [the IL], we'll give it a really good look."

It's been a challenging season for Perez, who has seen his production decline significantly following his historically good 2021 campaign. In 34 games, the 32-year-old is slashing just .206/.239/.397 — good for an 81 wRC+. He's been a net negative in terms of fWAR (minus-0.1) and was pacing to finish well short of last year's numbers even if he did play in every game the rest of the way this year. Injuries and general wear-and-tear may be part of the reason why. 

In addition to Tuesday's thumb injury, Perez has played through blurry vision in his eye, leg/knee discomfort and also general nicks and bruises in 2022 alone. Kansas City's iron man (aside from Whit Merrifield, of course) is notorious for pushing everything aside and getting out on the field, but it's been at least partially a detriment to him this year. He also has a shocking catcher vs. designated hitter split that will raise plenty of eyebrows.

Let's take a look:

• DH (49 at-bats): .286 AVG, 14 hits, 8 RBI, 4 2B, 4 HR, 0 GIDP
• C (87 at-bats): .161 AVG, 14 hits, 8 RBI, 4 2B, 2 HR, 5 GIDP

Whether this is just small sample size noise or something of much greater importance remains to be seen, but the difference (or similarities, in some cases) is staggering. Perez has fared much better when focusing solely on hitting this year. Despite that, he continues to maintain a reputation as a durable and reliable player. Matheny even admitted that the Royals had trouble keeping him out of the lineup for Tuesday's game two due to his eagerness to help the team win.

"It took us a while to get a lineup out because he knows he's got a sprain but he wanted to play," Matheny said. "He knew he could play through it.  The issue is, what are we risking here? We don't want to risk a season-ending injury if it gets worse. I love it. I love how he fights to play. This is a guy who's accomplished so much, and all he wants to do is help this team win regardless of all the stuff he's going through right now — and he's got some stuff. He's a warrior."

With MJ Melendez rising through the ranks of the organization and putting together quality at-bats at the big league level, it's reasonable to argue that Perez's days as a majority-time catcher should be over. With that said, the Royals may not see it that way. He's still their "warrior," and finding consistent time for him when not catching does cause a domino effect for the rest of the lineup. For now, he finds himself on the shelf for at least 10 days. Matheny appreciates his grit, and that's something that will never fade.