Saturday was indeed a special and emotional day for Perez and his family, as thousands of fans gathered outside of Great American Ball Park for the unveiling of a bronze statue in the likeness of the Hall of Fame slugger.
The pose artist Tom Tsuchiya chose was one that demonstrated Perez's power -- his home run in Game 7 of the 1975 World Series against Boston. What more than a dozen former teammates remembered, however, were his acts of clubhouse leadership, friendship, and sense of humor.
Johnny Bench recalled second baseman Joe Morgan being particularly unhappy with his performance early one season.