On July 13th, 2024, the RailCats signed veteran Yanio Perez, a 28-year-old from La Habana, Cuba. He is 6-3 and 270 lbs. He can play 1st base, 3rd base, and right field. For the RailCats, he will mostly be used as a DH.

Perez was a free agent signing of the Texas Rangers in September 2016. Perez was signed from the Cuban National Series, where he played for 2 years as a 17 and 18-year-old. Perez played 3 seasons in the minors, reaching Double-A in 2018.

His Career Stats in the minors: 2017-2019, Played in High-A, Single-A, Double-A, and Rookie Ball. Played in 292 games, 1179 Plate Appearances, Scored 116 runs, 277 Hits, 44 Doubles, 5 Triples, 25 Home runs, 134 RBIs, 15 Stolen bases, 10 Caught Stealing, Walked 89 times, and Striking out 249. He Slashed a .261/.325/.382 and an OPS of .707.

In 2021, he started his MLB Partner League career by signing with the Lincoln Saltdogs of the American Association. The following season, he played for the Sussex County Miners of the Frontier League. Last year, he returned to the Saltdogs.

Looking at his MLB Partner League Stats: He played in 174 games, 735 Plate Appearances, 90 runs scored, 200 Hits, 32 Doubles, 1 Triple, 19 Home runs, 110 RBIs, 4 Stolen bases, 2 times caught stealing, 52 walks, and struck out 123. He slashed a .302/.358/.440 and had an OPS of .797.

Let me start this one off by saying that when I saw Yanio Perez walk onto the field for warmups, I said, “That’s a big boy.” I don’t mean in a negative way one bit. He looks like a natural DH, and with Carlos Rincon out of the lineup, the DH spot was lacking. In fact, the DH spot was lacking all year because Rincon had to play in the field.

Getting back to Perez, he did play in this game where he went 2 for 4 with 2 singles. His 1st hit was off the end of the bat, and the ball still went flying into center field. He has a lot of pop to him, but he is more of a hitter like Jackon Valera but has the power of a Rincon. He is very compact in his swing, which allows him to stay in the zone for a longer period of time to drive the ball. He’s going to help in the run production once he gets settled back in.

He had an early opportunity to drive in a run or two but struck out. His 2 hits were with either 2 outs and no one on, or he was the leadoff hitter. I have a feeling we will be hearing his name a lot in a good way. I’m just surprised with his stats he wasn’t playing earlier, but things can be tricky when it comes to overseas players. But anyways, WELCOME TO THE SOUTHSHORE!