Cleveland Indians catcher Roberto Perez was thrust into the full-time starting catcher role for the team after a preseason trade that sent Yan Gomes to the Washington Nationals. That trade made Perez, who started 55 games in 2018 as a catching platoon, to play in 119 games as the main starter in 2019.
Perez will get credit for his surprising offense. His batting average jumped from a sub .200 clip in 2018 to a mark of .239. Most notably though his home run total went from two to 24. Factor in injuries to Jose Ramirez, Tyler Naquin, and Francisco Lindor, and that offense would have been enough to call Perez an important piece.