Royals catcher Salvador Perez overcame not one but three major obstacles on his journey to being named the 2020 American League Comeback Player of the Year.
The six-time All-Star won the honor on Thursday after missing all of 2019 because of Tommy John surgery. He then missed the beginning of Summer Camp after testing positive for COVID-19. He also missed over three weeks during the season because of a rare eye condition that caused blurriness.
Perez wasn’t deterred. In 37 games in 2020, he hit 11 home runs and 12 doubles, drove in 32 runs and posted a .986 OPS. His efforts were good enough to earn him a spot on the All-MLB First Team, which was unveiled on Wednesday.
Perez is entering the final year of his contract with Kansas City.
Perez recorded a .353 on-base percentage and a career-high .633 slugging percentage, which was the second highest in franchise history behind only Hall of Famer George Brett, who amassed a .664 mark during his AL MVP Award-winning season in 1980. Perez’s 11 home runs led Kansas City and were tied for third most by a player who played 37 games or fewer, trailing only Hall of Famers Frank Thomas in 2005 and Ted Williams in 1953.
Perez is the second Royals player to claim the AL Comeback Player of the Year Award, joining former teammate Mike Moustakas in 2017. Pitcher Bret Saberhagen also earned Comeback Player of the Year honors, from the Sporting News and United Press International, in 1987.