Top Milwaukee Brewers of the 2010s: 44. INF Hernan Perez

Our ranking of the Top 50 Milwaukee Brewers of the 2010s continues as we come to spot number 44 on our list.

We move out of the bullpen for this one, though this player has made a couple of appearances on the mound for the Milwaukee Brewers.

How We Ranked Them

We created an initial list of the top players by combining their FanGraphs Total WAR from each year they were/are on the Brewers and ranking them from highest to lowest.

However, this wasn’t going to to be a list of simply who had the highest WAR while they were here and that’s it. So we adjusted the list based on postseason contributions, overall quality of player, and general important to the franchise.

44. INF Hernan Perez

Making more of an appearance in the 2019, Hernan Perez has definitely made his contributions to the franchise in the four years he’s been with them.

2015: 0.4 WAR

2016: 1.1

2017: 0.6

2018: 0.5

2019: -0.3

Total WAR: 2.3

His minor league career started in 2009 with the Tigers organization in the Venezuelan Summer League. It wasn’t long until he was promoted to Class A-Advanced Lakeland Flying Tigers where he hit .264. By the 2011 season, he was with the West Michigan Whitecaps where he was twice named an All-Star.

The Milwaukee Brewers claimed Perez off waivers from Detroit in June 2015, and was immediately placed on the active roster. He appeared in at least 123 games during three straight seasons from 2016-18. He’s one of the few players to have stayed in the organization through the entire rebuilding process and is the third-longest tenured Brewer, behind only Ryan Braun and Jimmy Nelson.

In 2019, Perez was designated for assignment. He was outrighted on July 3 and was called back up to the Brewers when they optioned Travis Shaw back down and bought Perez’s minor league contract again. He wasn’t having a great offensive season, hitting a slump that pushed him out of the big leagues.

In his Brewers career, Perez owns a .258/.288/.400 slash line with 45 home runs and 175 RBIs. His best offensive season came in 2016, when he hit .272/.302/.428 with 13 homers, 56 RBIs, and 34 stolen bases.

Not only does Hernan have a hot bat when he’s at the plate, but he can basically play any position you throw him in. Even trying his hand at pitching, when he is far from a pitcher. In June 2019 in a game versus the Marlins, Milwaukee was trailing 16-0, Perez stepped up on the mound and pitched a clean inning to avoid using another pitcher from the bullpen. His wiggle on the mound could be part of the reason he coasted through the ninth inning with no resistance with the Marlins offense. If the wiggle looks familiar, it might be because it looks similar to what LHP Alex Claudio does for his wind up.

Hernan Perez’s presence in the clubhouse is definitely a well-loved one. Players like him, Brent Suter, and former Brewer Jesus Aguilar definitely brought the fun, hype, and excitement in the dugout.

Definitely hope Perez sticks around for a while as he is a well loved player in this franchise and placed at the No. 44 spot in our top 50 countdown.

Keep an eye out as we continue our countdown with more amazing Milwaukee Brewers players from the 2010s.