Robert Pérez

The numbers just don’t make sense. A pedestrian .254 batting average, 8 home runs, and 44 RBIs in six years in the majors simply shouldn’t belong to Robert Pérez. One can only wonder why one of Venezuela’s most beloved baseball players did not enjoy greater success in the big leagues despite a professional career that spanned more than a quarter-century.

Though Pérez was not blessed with the five tools, he possessed a tireless work ethic. A natural athlete, he willed his 6-foot-3, 205-pound frame to outperform his innate abilities and reached the major leagues in 1994, as the clash between owners and players left the nation without its beloved pastime.

Robert Alexander Pérez Jiménez was born on June 4, 1969, in Guayana City, the most populous city in Bolívar state. His parents, homemaker Luisa Jiménez and amateur boxer Jesús “Negro Blanco” Pérez, already had two children, Odalis and Richard, and would later welcome a fourth, Robinson. The elder Pérez instilled a love of sports into his brood, and the quartet was famous in its Vista del Sol neighborhood for their athletic exploits.

Odalis boxed in the Seventh Pan American Games (Mexico City, 1975) in the lightweight class. Richard ran like a gazelle in the 100-meter dash, boxed, played soccer, and tried out for the Lara Cardenales of the Venezuelan Winter Baseball League (LVBP, for Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional). Robert always preferred baseball but was also talented on the volleyball court and the soccer pitch. As a child, he rooted for La Guaira: “I was a fan of the Tiburones (Sharks). At home we’d listen to the games on the radio, back in the era of Oswaldo Blanco, Aurelio Monteagudo, Norman Carrasco, Alfredo Pedrique, and Juan Francisco Monasterios.”1

On May 1, 1989, Robert signed as an international free agent with the Toronto Blue Jays. He pocketed a $1,500 signing bonus. Almost 20, he would have been considered too old by today’s standards, but not in the 1980s, when Venezuela had not yet emerged as a baseball hotbed, and major-league franchises sought only prospects already under contract to a winter league team.

Pérez was scouted by Epifanio “Epy” Guerrero, who signed 52 Latin American players, including 17 Venezuelans, during his bird-dog career, mostly with the Cardenales and the Blue Jays. He benefited from the tutelage of Domingo Carrasquel, Alfonso “Chico” Carrasquel’s brother, and a former star in his own right. Carrasquel would teach Pérez more than just baseball: “I’ve always tried to be an upright citizen thanks to Domingo Carrasquel,” said Pérez. “He instilled the value of responsibility, work ethic and morals.”2

A year prior, Pedro Millán and Carrasquel had noticed the youngster and took him to Barquisimeto, capital of Lara province. Carrasquel recalled “the passion, given (Pérez’s) humble background. Urged by Pedro, I went to Ciudad Piar to see Pérez. I saw him practice and saw a fundamental trait: the hunger to play baseball, the desire to make himself into a ballplayer. I saw a love for baseball.”3 The sage Carrasquel’s track record proved he was rarely wrong in his assessments; Pérez grew to consider him as a father figure.

Pérez did not disappoint. He was named the MVP of the Dominican Summer League (DSL) and Rookie of the Year of the LVBP in 1989-90. The following spring, he played with the St. Catharines Blue Jays of the New York-Pennsylvania League. He was soon promoted to Myrtle Beach of the Class-A South Atlantic League and batted .269 in 73 combined games.

In 1991 he was promoted to the Class-A Advanced Florida State League. He slashed .302/.338/.401 in 516 plate appearances with Dunedin. After a four-game stint with Triple-A Syracuse, the Blue Jays added him to the 40-man roster.

Pérez received a coveted invitation to spring training in 1992, though the starting left-field job was held by veteran Candy Maldonado. Derek Bell was seen as the heir apparent, but Toronto was sufficiently impressed by Pérez’s potential to assign him to Double-A Knoxville to start the season while Shawn Green and Carlos Delgado, other heralded prospects, returned to Dunedin. The Blue Jays won their first World Series while Pérez averaged .261 in 526 plate appearances for Knoxville. His nine home runs foreshadowed a potential problem with insufficient power.

In 1993 Pérez improved to .294 with Syracuse but was passed over for a September call-up to the big leagues while both Delgado and Green enjoyed cups of coffee. During the season, Toronto employed six left fielders, including Rickey Henderson, acquired during the stretch run from the Oakland Athletics.

Henderson returned to Oakland in the offseason. Toronto sought to promote within its ranks rather than a sign a free agent. Rob Butler, Juan de La Rosa, and Pérez were the contenders, but none impressed: “Before leaving Florida, left field has to be settled. The two front-runners, Robert Perez [sic] and Rob Butler, did not take the bull by the horns, and Delgado was moved into the spot. It remains to be seen if Delgado’s quick process in the outfield will continue.”4

Pérez returned to Syracuse and lifted his average to .304 but hit only three home runs. Delgado struggled and Mike Huff, signed before the season as a backup, played a plurality of games in left field. Toronto was rumored to be interested in Larry Walker, but the Canadian native was not traded by Montreal. It appeared Pérez was not in general manager Pat Gillick’s sights. A long season, however, brings unforeseen opportunities.

Toronto played .500 ball most of the year and the club gave its youngsters a look. Pérez debuted on July 20, 1994, with 48,162 fans in attendance. He replaced Joe Carter in right field in the top of the seventh inning. The Jays led the Twins, 7-0, and Pérez flied out against Rick Aguilera in the eighth. Earlier that day, Syracuse manager Bob Didier shared the good news: “He told me I was going to play, that I’d been added to the roster, to take care of anything I needed since the flight to Toronto was leaving soon. The minors are the price you must pay to reach the major leagues. Everything was high class.”5

Pérez was the starting left fielder on July 29 against Baltimore. In his fourth trip to the plate at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, he singled in the ninth inning off Mark Eichorn for his first major-league hit. He finished the season 1-for-8 in four games.

Pérez understood his battle against other young players eager to prove their talent. The strike canceled 47 games, and, as the offseason progressed, threatened to wipe out 1995. Green, Butler, and Pérez decamped to Venezuela and new GM Gord Ash dispatched Mel Queen, his player development director, to evaluate their progress: “Outfielders Shawn Green and Robert Pérez, who figure to battle for the starting left-field job, are hitting over .300 for their Lara team and will soon be joined by Rob Butler, another Blue Jays outfield prospect. Mel’s more pleased with Green’s outfield play than necessarily the bat. We know he’s going to hit.”6

Green was indeed the apple of Toronto’s eye. After free agent Walker spurned the Jays for the Rockies, Carter shifted to left field and Green took over right. The lanky lefty was fifth in the 1995 AL Rookie of the Year voting thanks to his .509 slugging average. Meanwhile, Pérez demolished the International League. He led the league with a .343 average7 and again joined the Blue Jays, this time when rosters expanded in September.8

Toronto could not deny Pérez a roster spot in 1996. The question was whether he would surpass Huff as the fourth outfielder. Pérez broke camp with the team and appeared in 86 games, 48 as a starter. He had a solid .354 on-base percentage and a .327 batting average, but only 12 of his 66 hits were for extra bases. Hitting coach Willie Upshaw exhorted Pérez to alter his swing to produce more power, but Pérez was concerned about a slump and reduced playing time. The franchise relented but remained concerned about this weakness. Despite his five home runs in 191 at-bats with Lara in the 1996-97 LVPB, Toronto signed free agent Darrell Whitmore to compete for a bench role.9

Pérez spent most of his time on the bench in 1997. He played in 37 games (20 as a starter) and hit only two home runs: June 13 off the Phillies’ Ricky Bottalico and August 20, against Nelson Cruz of the White Sox. His .192/.192/.346 slash line did not augur a return.

The 29-year-old Pérez entered 1998 as a third-year player and Ash was unwilling to commit to his development any further. Pérez was waived on March 29 and claimed by Seattle a day later. The Mariners, however, flipped him to Montreál in exchange for Raúl Chávez. He was a valuable pinch-hitter and spare outfielder for the Expos, but a left wrist injury cost him a month of playing time. His performance suffered upon his return, and, unable to protect Vladimir Guerrero Sr. in the lineup, he was released on September 29, 1998. 10

Pérez tried his luck in Japan. In 1999 he signed a contract with the Orix Blue Wave and shared the outfield with the phenomenal Ichiro Suzuki during the latter’s next to last season in Japanese baseball. It was a rough transition for the Venezuelan: “I was very frustrated in Japan. They’d bring me up and send me down. I wasn’t prepared for the culture shock. It was hard and I wanted to leave halfway through the season.”11

Pérez returned to North America in 2000, again with the Blue Jays organization. He played with the Double-A Tennessee Smokies and finally generated power, with 19 home runs and 92 runs batted in. While those numbers did not excite Toronto, they caught the attention of the New York Yankees, who invited him to spring training in 2001.

Though a starting job was unlikely, Pérez was happy to wear the pinstripes. He started four consecutive games during Bernie Williams’s bereavement leave for his father’s funeral. After two weeks on the bench, the organization chose to send Pérez to the minors: “They called me into the office and Brian Cashman and Joe Torre were there. They said they were happy with my performance (4-for-15 in six games), but they needed to make a move and they chose me. They wanted to send me to Triple A and said they’d call me up at the first opportunity. They even offered me more money to go to the International League. I said ‘absolutely not!’ I signed my release papers because I wanted to stay in the majors, I felt good.”12

The Yankees placed Pérez on waivers on June 12 and the Milwaukee Brewers promptly claimed him. He hit .333 in 84 at-bats with Triple-A Indianapolis and was called up to the parent club. He started on July 1 against Houston (0-for-4) and pinch-hit the next day (0-for-1). He languished on the bench and was again demoted to the minors. Regular, consistent playing time continued to evade him.

In 2002 Pérez split time between Indianapolis (43 games, .197) and Columbus (84 games, .275) in a return to the Yankee organization. However, neither club promoted him to the majors.

At 32, Pérez still had a lot of baseball left to play, though few would have imagined he would last an additional 13 years. He continued to play in the LVBP, and was a resourceful import in the Mexican (2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009), Korean (2003, 2004, 2007), and Italian Leagues (2011). He was the third-oldest player on Team Venezuela for the 2006 World Baseball Classic. Father Time was seemingly the only obstacle he couldn’t overcome and Pérez retired at age 45.

In his early 50s, Pérez remained a baseball lifer. He has served as the hitting coach of the Cardenales, the Tiburones, and the Navegantes (Navigators) of Magallanes. He worked in the same capacity with the Venezuelan youth national team, winner of the 2020 U-23 Baseball World Cup in Mexico. Since 2022, he has been the bench coach of the Miranda Líderes (Leaders) in the nascent Liga Mayor de Béisbol Profesional (LMBP, Major Professional Baseball League), a summer circuit started in 2021.13

In 2015 the LVBP Finals MVP Award was named in Pérez’s honor, a fitting tribute given his record 11 home runs in the finals (tied with Tony Armas Sr.) Regarded as one of the finest right-handed batters produced by Venezuela, Pérez’s name is a fixture in the LVBP record books. As of 2024, he was the all-time leader in career RBIs (736), doubles (221), games (1,300), extra-base hits (382), and runs scored (625). He won five Gold Gloves in 27 seasons (behind only Vic Davalillo’s 30) and is third in the HR list with 125 home runs. (He broke Armas’s record before his own was surpassed by Alex Cabrera and Eliézer Alfonzo.) Pérez is one of only six players to reach 1,000 hits and one of 20 to hit three home runs in the same game; he is the only one to have accomplished the feat twice. He was deservedly elected to the LVBP Hall of Fame in 2021.14

Pérez founded the Robert Pérez 51 Academy (RP51, after his LVBP uniform number) in June 2015 to focus on the development of Venezuelan prospects. He has four daughters (Roberit, Gabriela, Melani, and Yulihed) and two sons (Robert Jr. and Hedbert). Robert Jr. has followed his father’s footsteps: Signed with the Seattle Mariners as a 16-year-old, he began the 2024 season with the San Antonio Missions, San Diego’s Double-A affiliate. Like his father, the son is a right-handed outfielder, and played with the Cardenales in 2023-2024, coached by his father.

Despite a 27-year career in four continents, Pérez carries a chip on his shoulder: “I wasn’t a regular in MLB but if I’d had the chance to play every day, maybe I would’ve shown what I could do, like I did in the Venezuelan league. I had the talent and the physical condition to shine in the majors, but I am proud to have played in the big leagues with several teams. I respect baseball and everything God has given me.”15

Last revised: January 31, 2026

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseballreference.com, ESPN.com, Newspapers.com, MLB.com, Pelotabinaria.com.ve, Sabr.org, Radiofeyalegrianoticias.com, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter.

Photo credit: Robert Pérez, Getty Images.

Notes

1 “Robert Pérez con la Guaira,” Tiburones de la Guaira website, September 21, 2018, https://www.tiburones.net/nota/3968/robert-perez-con-la-guaira.

2 “Robert Pérez cumple 51 años y sigue siendo la leyenda más prominente de los Cardenales,” El Extrabase, June 4, 2020, https://elextrabase.com/2020/06/04/robert-perez-cumple-51-anos-y-sigue-siendo-la-leyenda-mas-prominente-de-cardenales/.

33 W. Duarte, “51: Más que una Leyenda Robert Pérez (Robert Pérez” More Than a Legend,” WD Productions, Barquisimeto, Venezuela, 2016.

4 Steve Milton, “Offense-Rich Jays Will Be There Again in October,” The Sporting News, April 4, 1994: 74.

5 “Robert Pérez,” Latin World Sports, Venezuela 2018.

6 Steve Milton, “Weekly Reports: Toronto Blue Jays,” The Sporting News, November 21, 1994: 45.

7 Though other hitters had a higher average, they did not garner the required plate appearances to qualify for the batting title. In second place, behind Pérez, was Yankees prospect Derek Jeter.

8 Associated Press, “Transactions,” Salina (Kansas) Journal, September 2, 1995: 12.

9 Tom Maloney, “Weekly Reports: Toronto Blue Jays,” The Sporting News, January 27, 1997: 50.

10 Stephanie Myles, “Trade Talk Has Been Quiet Despite Available Talent,” The Sporting News, August 3, 1998: 31.

11 Luis Sojo, “La Estrella Invitada: Entrevista especial con Robert Pérez,” Sojo Productions, 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NJiUDlrIxA  

12 “Sports in 60 seconds. Yankees Make Moves,” Chicago Daily Herald, June 13, 2001: 58.

13 Eudo Torres, “Viene la segunda edición de la Liga Mayor de Béisbol Profesional,” Radio fe y alegría noticias, February 22, 2002, https://www.radiofeyalegrianoticias.com/viene-la-segunda-edicion-de-la-liga-mayor-de-beisbol-profesional/

14 “Roberto Pérez: Una Pared Negra de la Fama”, Museo de Béisbol YouTube Page, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvMAd-Q-PSo&ab_channel=MUSEODEBEISBOL

15 “La Estrella Invitada.”