PHILADELPHIA -- The Phillies fan who caught Salvador Perez’s 300th career home run and 1,000th career RBI in the left-center-field bleachers of Citizens Bank Park did not demand anything in return for delivering the ball to Perez following the Royals’ 8-6 loss to the Phillies on Saturday night.
Shaking Perez’s hand and a quick photo with the Royals’ legend sufficed after his milestone night, hitting two home runs to become the eighth primary catcher (min. 75% of games caught) in MLB history to reach 300 home runs and the 10th active player to drive in 1,000 runs.
But Perez, of course, made sure the group was taken care of, gifting them one of his Royals jerseys, batting gloves, batting helmet and more.
As he signed hats, Perez thanked the group for coming down to the visiting clubhouse and for being so willing to give the milestone ball back. He then urged them to think about becoming Royals fans and told them that his team, now 7 games out of the final American League Wild Card spot, will keep playing hard until the very last out of the very last game of the season.
“You never know,” Perez said. “Baseball is crazy.”
The interaction summed up Salvy in all the best ways.
“We’ve talked quite a bit about the respect that he’s earned around the league and from the players,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “You see it night in and night out. It’s really cool. The way he handles things, the way he respects other people as well. He does everything the right way.
“He’s somebody that you hope your kids grow up to be like.”
Perez’s swing off Phillies starter Taijuan Walker in the third inning put him on a list with seven other catchers to have hit 300 home runs: Hall of Famers Mike Piazza, Johnny Bench, Carlton Fisk, Yogi Berra, Gary Carter and Iván Rodríguez, as well as eight-time All-Star Lance Parrish, who is not in the Hall.
It was a great night for Perez. It was not a good night for the Royals, who scored more than three runs for just the fourth time in the last 15 games but failed to hold the lead against a relentless Phillies lineup.
Kansas City has lost six of its last seven games and dropped below .500 (74-75) for the first time since Aug. 13. Its playoff odds, slim at the start of September, have all but evaporated in an American League Wild Card race that has tightened around four teams while leaving the Royals behind.
Naturally, the mood was somber in the clubhouse postgame.
“We should be celebrating him,” shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. said, glancing at the captain’s locker. “It’s tough.”
Perez would have taken a win over the milestones.
“I would feel better if we won the game tonight,” Perez said. “I think everybody in this game has some personal goals. But I always say the most important thing is to win. No matter what you do. At the end of the day, it’s about [if you] win or lose. It’s not about you. … I thank God for letting me play the game that I love to play, compete every day. But I would have felt better if we won tonight.”
This defines Perez more than anything and is the reason he has been able to reach these milestones. The 35-year-old is the heart and soul of a Royals organization that has seen a lot of losing in the 13 years Perez has been in the big leagues but also reached the highest pinnacle of the sport with the 2015 World Series, with Perez taking home MVP honors in that Series.
He’s a nine-time All-Star and a five-time Gold Glove winner. In 2024, he won the Roberto Clemente Award.
Perez appears on his way to Cooperstown, too. Not any time soon, though, because Perez has to hang up his cleats first -- and has no interest in doing that.
Perez is now just 17 home runs shy of George Brett’s all-time franchise record (317), as the two are the only Royals to hit 200 home runs with the club, let alone 300. He’s also the third Royal with 1,000 RBIs in franchise history, 12 shy of Hal McRae (1,012) for second on the all-time list and 596 behind Brett at the top of the list. Perez has a good shot of claiming the club home run record in 2026, provided the Royals pick up his $13.5 million club option as expected.
“I’m going to do my best to get there,” Perez said. “I want to stay here as many years as I can.”