Royals’ Salvador Perez lands on injured list with ‘lingering’ concussion symptoms
The Kansas City Royals will be without their captain for a while. The Royals placed catcher Salvador Perez on the seven-day concussion injured list.
Perez was struck by a foul tip against the Houston Astros last Saturday. The ball ricocheted off his catcher’s mask upon impact. Perez massaged his chin and jaw as he tried to remain in the game.
The Royals came out to check on Perez and he continued to catch. However, Perez would exit the game two batters later. The Royals replaced him with backup Logan Porter, who finished out Saturday’s victory.
Perez was further evaluated and initially diagnosed with a non-concussive head impact. He didn’t play in Sunday’s finale against the Astros.
On Monday, Royals manager Matt Quatraro provided an update on Perez’s condition.
“As is protocol when you have a head impact, the next day you follow up with a concussion specialist,” Quatraro said. “At that point, he had some lingering symptoms. As they went through further evaluations, they determined that he did sustain a mild concussion.”
Quatraro added that Perez felt concussion symptoms on Sunday afternoon.
“I think that is somewhat common with concussions,” Quatraro said. “Initially, you feel like soreness at the site of the impact. But some of the neurological symptoms tend to progress as you get a little further away from the actual event.”
Per MLB rules, the seven-day injured list is for players who have concussion symptoms. Perez will be required to clear concussion protocols before restarting baseball activities.
The Royals have lost two catchers due to injury. Earlier this month, Freddy Fermin underwent surgery to repair a fractured left middle finger. He was transferred to the 60-day injured list and is expected to miss the remainder of the season.
KC will rely on Porter and fellow catcher Tyler Cropley moving forward. Both were in the minor leagues for much of the season.
Porter was recalled from Triple-A Omaha last week. He is hitting .400 with one home run and three RBIs in 10 at-bats. He will draw the majority of the catching duties.
Meanwhile, Cropley will get a second chance with the Royals. He was recalled from Double-A Northwest Arkansas during his first stint with the organization in Toronto.
Cropley didn’t see game action. He was designated for assignment, cleared waivers and optioned to Triple-A. Now, he will operate as the Royals’ backup in the short term.
“It’s been a crazy week and a half for sure,” Cropley said. “Omaha was great, but glad to be back here and see what we can do.”
After Monday, the Royals have 11 games remaining this season. Quatraro hopes that Perez can return before the end of the year.
Cropley is excited to relish his opportunity. He gets a chance to potentially make his MLB debut at Kauffman Stadium.
“This is where you want to make your official debut,” Cropley said. “Your home field and be in front of the fans. (It) will be a lot easier to get family down here than in Toronto.”
The Royals begin a three-game series with the Cleveland Guardians on Monday.
