Projo Sox Blog

BY DANIEL BARBARISI
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- The biggest moment of Fernando Perez brief major league career went by so fast he still isn't sure what happened.

B.J. Upton hit a short fly to right field. Perez looked at third base coach Tom Foley.

"I remember looking at him, and I think I saw him kind of licking his lips and looking up at the ball. I was kind of doing the same thing," the rookie said yesterday.

The ball was hit short enough that right fielder J.D. Drew would have trouble setting himself for the throw. Perez thought he could make it, he just needed permission from Foley.

"You know, when you see an owner holding a very dangerous dog back, that's kind of how I felt with Foley there," Perez said.

The two locked eyes.

"I turned over to Tom, and we sort of had a conversation without using any words . . . I didn't defy him and go on my own, but I think we both intuitively sensed it was the right decision, Perez said.

Then Perez took off.

He raced down the line, and Drew threw towards home. The strong-armed Drew has said that his shoulder hurt where he was struck by a pitch Friday, and the throw didn't have much juice on it heading towards the plate.

Perez saw it coming out of the corner of his eye, but couldn't tell exactly what was happening. He steeled himself for a collision with catcher Kevin Cash.

"I was going right at the plate. I was really expecting a collision, one of those dramatic home plate collisions. So as soon as I saw Cash moving up the line, I knew it was a shallow throw."
He beat the ball to home plate, scored the game-winning run, and was immediately mobbed by his teammates.

Perez, who had only 60 at bats this season, and former No. 1 overall pick David Price were no locks to make the championship series roster, but both made huge contributions towards Tampa's win Sunday night. Both could see an expanded role as the series continues.

"Fernando makes you think a little bit. The young man really -- both these guys, they're really calm. I'm sure you've noticed this, but they're really in the moment and they've handled the situation extremely well. We're not adverse or apprehensive at all about utilizing either one of them," said Rays manager Joe Maddon.

Perez is a rare breed in the majors: An Ivy League graduate, hailing from Columbia University, the Ivy League school long removed from the glory days of alumnus Lou Gehrig. The last Columbia moment of greatness came in 1991, when 1984 alumni Gene Larkin drove in the winning run in the World Series for the Minnesota Twins. Perez said he knows all about Larkin.

"Yeah, World Series [winner]," he said. "I was 3, I believe, so I was not watching. But it's pretty neat, pretty good company."

Perez, 25, who would have been 8 at the time, was clearly no math major. He studied creative writing and American studies.

"I did short prose and personal essays. I was kind of trying to develop my own little thing there," he said.

 Tags  Dan Barbarisi Fernando Perez Joe Maddon

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