St. Louis Cardinals: Delvin Perez is showing off progress

The St. Louis Cardinals drafted Delvin Perez almost five years ago with the No. 23 pick. He was expected to be a revelation, part of the team’s long-term core and the answer at shortstop.

Instead, he has not appeared in a major-league game. Perez, 22, has not played in a game since 2019, most recently playing for Low-A Peoria. He was undersized and took it as a challenge to add muscle to maximize the potential that Cardinals executives have salivated over since he was drafted.

Boy, has he delivered. His shoulders now broad, his body more filled out, Perez has taken Cardinals camp by storm. Some have commented, via Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “Hey, no more skinny guy.”

“To be honest, I was seeing how my career was going down,” Perez said. “And I know that I was doing everything wild — all over the place. And I decided to change. Going in the other direction to start a good career. … I feel like I’m enjoying the game because maturity has come and I’m ready. I want it. I want it. I want it. You know? When you want it, you go.”

The improvements for Perez were highlighted when he smoked a ball to left center off one of the Cardinals’ top pitching prospects. He had not hit a ball like that before. But now, he was doing it consistently.