According to multiple reports, the Yankees have signed veteran relief pitcher Oliver Perez to a minor league deal. He will report to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Perez, 36, spent the last two seasons with the Washington Nationals. He pitched to a 4.64 ERA (3.82 FIP) over 33 innings. It’s been a rough go for the southpaw the past few years. You have to go back to 2014, when he pitched for the Diamondbacks, to find the last time he had a quality campaign.
A true lefty-specialist, Perez held left-handed batters to a .227/.301/.364 batting line. Right-handers, however, torched him to the tune of .279/.371/.517. He doesn’t throw particularly hard, averaging 93.18 mph with his fourseam fastball, nor does he generate a lot of groundballs. He has a solid strikeout rate, though, which is a useful tool for a left-handed reliever.
This is pretty clearly a depth move. Someone has to pitch in Triple-A, after all. Perez could receive a call up to the big leagues — how many teams get through the entire season without shuffling the bullpen? If he can still get left-handed batters out, then I don’t see a problem with it. The more depth the merrier.