Royals C Salvador Perez says pitch clock could add 'two more years' to career

Perez is in his 13th year in the big leagues (all spent with the Royals) and at 32 years old, the innings may be starting to add up for the backstop. Perez played in at least 129 regular season games every year from 2013-18 before missing the entire 2019 campaign with an elbow injury.

The seven-time All-Star played in 37 of the team's 60 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, before suiting up in a career-high 161 contests in 2021. Perez was limited to just 114 games last year due to a thumb injury, but with potentially upwards of 30 fewer minutes spent on the diamond this season, there could be fewer chances of injury.

The five-time Gold Glove Award winner could also be thinking that the quicker the games, the fresher his legs will be, allowing him to extend his career. While Kansas City has been in full rebuild mode since 2018 (and are expected to be one of the worst teams in 2023), Perez also has 31 career playoff games that have added to the physical toll on his body, by way of the Royals' runs to the World Series in 2014 and 2015.

The Venezuelan would surely say all the extra work was worth it though, as the team not only won the 2015 Fall Classic, but Perez was named MVP of the series that year as well.

In addition to the pitch clock, being able to play a chunk of games each season as Kansas City's designated hitter will surely help prolong his MLB journey. Perez matched his career-high last year with 40 games as the team's DH, which he also did in 2021.

The Royals have promising second-year pro MJ Melendez as a player who can take plenty of the load off of Perez behind the dish, as the 24-year-old made 78 appearances at catcher in 2022.