Blue Jays need to lock up Hernan Perez if non-tendered by Brewers

PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 03: Hernan Perez
PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 03: Hernan Perez

The salary arbitration deadline for teams to tender contracts to eligible players is this upcoming Friday at 8 pm eastern and MLB Trade Rumors just released their list of possible non-tender candidates who could conceivably become free agents before week’s end.

The MLB Trade Rumors list features two Blue Jays players as non-tender candidates in the likes of pitcher Tom Koehler and infielder Ryan Goins. They prognosticated Koehler to earn $6.0 million coupled with $1.8 million for Goins. Both players provide versatility in their respective roles, however, $6 million for Koehler may be a tough pill to swallow for the Jays brain trust moving forward.

The list showcases some interesting names who could become available via the free agent route although Hernan Perez jumps out off the list as a must-have for the Jays should he hit the open market.

Perez is essentially a cheap version of everything the Blue Jays sought last offseason and still are currently seeking this time around. The 26-year old has played every position with the exception of catcher during his 6-year MLB career, Perez even has a scoreless inning on the bump under his belt.

Here is a breakdown of his games played per position thus far in his MLB career:

  • 3rd Base- 175 games
  • Outfield- 134 games: 66 in RF, 55 in LF and 26 in CF
  • 2nd Base- 78 games
  • Shortstop- 19 games
  • 1st Base- 15 games
  • DH- 5 games
  • Pitcher- 1 game

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The native of Venezuela earned $545,700 in 2017 and is predicted to get a raise in the neighbourhood of $2.2 million for the upcoming campaign, not a huge sum of money with all things considered.

Perez had somewhat of a lunchbox letdown last season, a year removed from his breakout season in 2016. Last year, Perez slashed .259/.289/.414 with 14 round trippers and 13 stolen bases in 17 attempts in 136 contests. Not the worst season ever but a definite decline from his previous body of work.

His 2016 stat line is very impressive as Perez hit .272/.302/.428 with 13 homers and 34 stolen bases in 41 attempts. Exactly the versatility and athleticism the Blue Jays lineup so lacked last season.

Some other interesting names on the potential non-tender list are catchers Sandy Leon and Stephen Vogt, shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria, infielders Brad Miller and Matt Adams and relievers Hector Rondon, Jeremy Jeffress and J.J. Hoover to name a few.

Next: Blue Jays: Free agent bench options aplenty

If Perez hits the free agent market, I’d throw $12 million at him over the next 3 seasons and hope that is enough to persuade Perez to take his services north of the border.