Wenceel Perez Is the Latest Detroit Tigers Unsung Hero

The contact Perez has made is drastically better than last season. While I understand a .337 ISO will not hold up, the other numbers at least show what Perez is capable of. IF he’s able to make hard contact at this rate his ceiling as a player is completely changed.

As you know, pulling the ball in the air typically leads to the best results. Currently, Perez is pulling the ball in the air at a 34.8% clip, which ranks with the best of baseball. However, even as that numbers regresses with sample size, falling somewhere between 22% and 36% will still be in the top 25% of baseball.

No, I do not think Perez will turn into a a home run hitter, but shooting gaps very well could be part of his game. Blend his speed with the large outfield in Detroit and you have an extra base machine.

Perhaps the most promising difference from last season has been Perez’s ability to handle lefties. The switch-hitter was really just a platoon bat last year due to a sub-.600 OPS against southpaws with only one home run, an opposite field solo shot off Steven Matz.

Again, small sample, but Perez already has three home runs off lefties already this season. Two of which were pull side, which we did not see once all of last season.

The first one in this video was on an inside pitch, a location Perez had all of one hit versus lefties all of last season. Sure, both pull side home runs were off slower velocity but when he did catch 96 mph he was able to muscle it out to right center (last clip of video).

How Perez manages lefties as the season goes on is on the top of my list of things to monitor with him specifically. While the numbers were poor last season, if you look under the hood you see some reason to believe his success might not be a fluke.

The picture above is showing Perez’s average exit velocities, against lefties, for each area of the zone. On the left is 2024 and on the right is 2025. A lot more goes into success besides exit velocities, but it does tell us that Perez has impacted the baseball at above average rates which, over time, will lead to success.

A switch-hitter with good speed, above average defense, and at least average contact rates that has also flashed some pop? The Tigers should be thrilled with what they have seen so far.

Concerns and What’s Next

Perez start has been everything and more than the Tigers have asked for, but can he continue to play at a level that warrants playing time?

You might remember Perez had a similar jolt once first getting recalled last season. In March of 2024 Perez slashed .302/.375/.628 with three home runs surprising even his biggest believers. However, he did not have an OPS above .680 in any other month and batted under .200 in the second half.

Are we seeing another hot stretch or a true breakout? Time will tell. Pulling the ball against lefties and his home run against Jonathan Cannon, a righty, where Perez drove an elevated outside pitch out of the ballpark to left center showed me an ability that I did not see much of, if ever, last season.

As pitchers continue to attack Perez it will be interesting to see how he finds success against breaking balls. He hit .203 against breaking balls last year and current has a .167 average on them this year with a 52.4% whiff rate (22 plate appearances). Perez also chases outside of the zone more than you would like which could lead to pitchers leaning into breaking balls more until he shows an ability to lay off tough pitches moving from inside to outside of the zone.

Young players often struggle the most off these pitches so it is not entirely worth sounding any alarms. Not so much a problem as much as the next step in his development. We’ll see if he’s able to improve over time or if it will be a weak spot in his game.

Perez has earned an extended look. The Tigers are potentially looking for another bat at the deadline and if Perez continues to play at a high level that’s one less need to fill.

Final Thoughts

What an easy guy to root for. A middling prospect who has challenged himself and changed his game in order to get where he is. A former infielder moved to the outfield and has made strides defensively while also going from a contact hitter to a player with some pop.

Detroit needed a jolt to their offense and Perez has been the unexpected answer. He’s lifted the team in a time where Kerry Carpenter has been less than what was expected and Matt Vierling has been injured. Regardless of how it plays out, Perez is quickly turning into a fan favorite in the motor city.