Potanko: Perdomo Stepped Up For Pirates When Needed (+)
Early Saturday afternoon, the Pittsburgh Pirates made some roster moves that included calling up LHP Angel Perdomo.
After an hour rain delay on Saturday, the Pirates were forced to pull their starter Luis Ortiz and gave the game over to Perdomo, who was making his Pirates debut.
Perdomo then retired all seven batters he faced in a row while also striking out three in the process.
Saturday night’s appearance was the first for Perdomo since Aug. 10, 2021, for the Milwaukee Brewers, where he pitched 0.2 innings and gave up an earned run on one hit and three walks.
After the Pirates earned a 4-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals Saturday night, manager Derek Shelton spoke to the media about Perdomo and what he saw from the 29-year-old.
“First off, the bullpen was outstanding [today]. I don’t think you can say enough about our bullpen. We lost our starter because of the rain delay, and they just continued to push through. Perdomo was outstanding and kept us in the game. [He pitched] 2.1 and was able to come in and get Burleson in the third inning. They just continued to go and fed off of each other.”
Shelton also mentioned that Perdomo was definitely going to be the guy to replace Ortiz if the delay was significant due to where the Cardinals were at in the batting order.
As I had mentioned before, it’s been a little while since Perdomo had been in the majors and pitched in a game, so where exactly was his head, and how was he feeling?
It always feels good to be back in the big leagues,” said Perdomo. “This is my second opportunity to be up here, thanks to the Pirates. They have trust in me, and I’m here just to make the most out of it”
Rain delays can be fun for some and nerve-racking for others. It seems like Perdomo embraced the moment.
“That’s the fun part. I never think that I’m going to be on the mound at any day, I just keep myself ready just in case I get the call, but I don’t get nervous when it comes to expecting the call. Just stay ready the whole game.”
Nerves of steel, it would seem, for the 6 foot 8 lefty. As a side note, Perdomo is now tied for second for the tallest Pirates’ pitcher since they’ve tracked the stat.
During his outing on Saturday, Perdomo threw his four-seam the majority of the time at 69% and maxed out at around 95 mph. His four-seam seems to be a really good setup pitch to that slider.
“The key is to establish my fastball, and my slider will work off of that,” said Perdomo. “If that fastball is working that night, the slider is most likely going to be working, too.”
Perdomo was extremely consistent during his time with the Pirates Triple-A team in Indianapolis, with a 3.18 ERA in 22.2 innings pitched and 35 strikeouts.
The Pirates’ minor league pitching program has proved to pay dividends for many, and now maybe Perdomo is the next recipient.
“[The program] Keeps my mind in the game the whole time,” said Perdomo. [It helps you] pay attention to small details, and that’s a good thing. And then, even if I’m down in the minors, the thing I’m going to do the whole time is just stay in the game and focus in the right way.”
Perdomo then described who helped him a ton in Triple-A.
“Benny down in Triple-A – my bullpen coach is helping a lot – just to be in the game mentally more and with my body posture to stay in line to make good pitches.”
The Pirates bullpen has been tremendous during this four-game winning streak, and if guys like Perdomo can carry the weight to give some guys rest, it makes things even better for the club.
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