Royals all-star catcher, Gold Glove winner and team leader Salvador Perez starts the longest season of his major-league career — one in which he’ll be relegated to watching and cheering — and his closest companion for the first part of the season will be a small, red exercise ball that fits in the palm of his hand.
Speaking to reporters at the Royals facility in Arizona for the first time since his Tommy John surgery on March 6, Perez referred to that ball as his “new friend” as he held it in his hands and squeezed repeatedly. Those small hand/forearm exercises signify the first stage of what will feel like a glacially slow rehab process for Perez.