Isaac Ciravolo
Eury Pérez was perfect for seven innings on Sunday against the Athletics. Then the Miami Marlins pulled him and the bullpen nearly threw the game away.
Pérez carved up the Athletics lineup. He retired all 21 batters he faced and struck out eight on 92 pitches. While his surface-level numbers look ordinary this season, holding a 5-6 record and a 3.84 ERA, his underlying metrics remain elite. His strikeout rate is an elite 81st percentile and generates heavy swing-and-miss with his 75th percentile Whiff%.
The Calculated Hook
Marlins manager Clayton McCullough made the controversial call to pull Pérez before the eighth at just 92 pitches. Miami is actively hunting for a potential postseason bid. It would be their first playoff appearance since 2023, making their second-in-command’s, behind Sandy Alcantara, health a top priority.
“Us looking to play beyond the regular season, Eury’s going to be an important part of that,” McCullough explained. “I have to think about Eury, one, and our organization… to give us a chance to continue to win games. So I made a calculated decision with where he was with his pitch count.”
McCullough also confirmed there was absolutely no consideration to let him go batter by batter. The cap was 90 pitches from before the game.
Bullpen Meltdown
Reliever Lake Bachar took the mound in the eighth to protect an 8-0 lead. He faced six batters without recording a single out.
Bachar walked the first hitter, ending the perfect game. He then surrendered a bloop single on the very next at-bat to end the no-hitter. Four batters late, Jonah Heim blasted a grand slam. Miami barely survived this late collapse, holding on for a wild 9-8 victory. Pérez secured the win, but the bullpen nearly erased a masterpiece.
