Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez etched his name into franchise history yesterday, launching his 318th career home run in Saturday afternoon’s game against the Detroit Tigers. That 401-foot bomb in the seventh inning tied the game at 2-2, but more importantly, it officially pushed him past Royals legend George Brett for the all-time home run lead.
Perez Shatters Brett’s Record in Way Fewer Games
Perez has been rocking it for the Royals since 2011, making him one of MLB’s absolute longest-tenured active players. That’s some serious staying power, right? Get this: he slammed his 318th career homer in a shocking 1,805 games. Compare that to the previous record holder, George Brett, who played his entire career for the Royals from 1973 to 1993. Brett mashed 317 dingers, but it took him a whopping 2,707 games to do it. Perez blew past Brett’s mark in almost 900 fewer games! He had actually tied Brett’s 317-homer record just last Wednesday, setting the stage for Saturday’s absolutely massive, historic blast.
The Fan Incident That Shows Perez’s True Colors
But hold up, because here’s where the story gets even crazier! When Perez tied Brett’s record with his 317th homer last Wednesday, some fan went full send and dove into a fountain at Kauffman Stadium to retrieve the ball. Naturally, the guy got arrested. But Perez, showing the kind of heart you love to see in a legend, publicly requested his release! He wasn’t even mad. He told the media, “Please, police, just take care of the job, please, and send him home. If I was him, I’d maybe jump too and try to get that ball, so please. And thank you for the hard work in trying to get that ball.” Are you kidding me? What a legend. The Kansas City Police Department later confirmed to Fox 4 Kansas City that the fan was indeed cited for trespassing and had been released. This guy is pure gold!
Questions Rise About Longevity as Perez Transitions
So, with all this record-breaking fire, you gotta wonder: how many more seasons does Perez actually have left in the tank? He is set to turn 37 next season, which would be his 17th year in the bigs. To try and keep that career rolling, he’s largely transitioned from behind the plate, where he used to catch, to serving primarily as the Royals’ designated hitter. This year alone, he has caught 39 of the 97 games he has played, spending most of his time at DH. Look, the numbers aren’t exactly screaming ‘MVP’ right now. His current slash line for the season is sitting at .210/.257/.361. If the season ended today, those would all be career lows. Still, the dude has belted 15 home runs and driven in 44 RBI this year. And let’s be real, none of those homers pack the punch or history of that franchise record-setting bomb he unleashed on Saturday.
Even with some of those stats showing the grind of a long career, Perez just absolutely cemented his spot in Royals history with that 318th homer. What a moment. What a career. He’s clearly fighting to keep that bat in the lineup, and every single game he plays from here on out is just another layer to a legendary career that Kansas City will be buzzing about for decades. That’s how you do it, folks!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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