The Kansas City Royals are in the middle of their rebuild, which means they have specific stars to bring them what little success they are expected to have on paper. Unfortunately for him and them, Perez damaged his ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow and is now expected to undergo Tommy John Surgery, which would make him miss the entire 2019 season. The former 2015 World Series MVP suffered the injury during a workout on Wednesday, and the team claimed that an MRI on Thursday confirmed the damage.
The 28-year-old will travel to California for a second opinion before they officially rule him out for the season. He will meet with the Los Angeles Dodgers' head physician Dr. Neal ElAttrache. Perez has a $10 million salary this season, and is owed $13 million in each of the next two seasons.
The catcher has made the American League All-Star team in each of the past six seasons, and has won Gold Gloves in five of the past six years. He is coming off a career-low .235 batting average this past season, but did hit 27 home runs and had 80 RBIs for a second consecutive year. Cam Gallagher and Mibrys Viloria are the other two catchers on the Royals' roster that are expected to take over behind the plate. Gallagher played in 35 games over the past two seasons and has a .218 career batting average with two home runs and 12 RBIs.
The 22-year-old Viloria only appeared in three games as a September call-up last season. This injury comes after the Royals traded their primary backup of the past three seasons. Drew Butera, to the Colorado Rockies on August 31st. Butera joined the Philadelphia Phillies on a minor-league contract in February.
The 28-year-old will travel to California for a second opinion before they officially rule him out for the season. He will meet with the Los Angeles Dodgers' head physician Dr. Neal ElAttrache. Perez has a $10 million salary this season, and is owed $13 million in each of the next two seasons.
The catcher has made the American League All-Star team in each of the past six seasons, and has won Gold Gloves in five of the past six years. He is coming off a career-low .235 batting average this past season, but did hit 27 home runs and had 80 RBIs for a second consecutive year. Cam Gallagher and Mibrys Viloria are the other two catchers on the Royals' roster that are expected to take over behind the plate. Gallagher played in 35 games over the past two seasons and has a .218 career batting average with two home runs and 12 RBIs.
The 22-year-old Viloria only appeared in three games as a September call-up last season. This injury comes after the Royals traded their primary backup of the past three seasons. Drew Butera, to the Colorado Rockies on August 31st. Butera joined the Philadelphia Phillies on a minor-league contract in February.
