Royals' Salvador Perez puts so-so 2025 behind him, starts anew in Venezuela with slam

With so much of the attention turning to the Winter Meetings, it can be a jolt to remember there is baseball being played elsewhere.

MLB players keep the reps coming abroad, and one of the strongest leagues for this is the Venezuelan Winter League. There are Kansas City Royals players sprinkled throughout the teams, mainly depth pieces or those still moving through the organization’s system. But look at the Leones del Caracas and Royals fans will find their faithful team captain, the last link to the championship-winning Royals, catcher Salvador Perez.

Perez hasn’t been playing the entire season, but he made a statement in his second game this winter. It is poetic for Venezuela’s 2026 World Baseball Classic team captain to clobber this home run to left field, making the crowd explode like it’s a postseason game at Kauffman Stadium instead of a winter night back home.

Royals' Salvador Perez gets off on the right note in Venezuela after lackluster 2025 MLB season

Perez currently shares a uniform with former Royals players like catcher Freddy Fermin and pitcher Carlos Hernandez, keeping the bat swinging months ahead of Spring Training.

Perez hasn’t played in the Venezuelan Winter League since the 2022-2023 season, when he appeared in seven games and posted a 1.081 OPS for Zulia. His first, and best, full Venezuelan Winter League performance was a precursor to his first All-Star selection in the 2013 MLB season. Perez played for Tiburones de La Guaira that winter, appearing in 32 games with eight home runs and a team-leading 1.041 OPS in that body of work.

Perez was vocal about the value of playing in Venezuela following that season’s conclusion, and was irritated when MLB banned players from participating in the league following the 2019 season.

“I don’t like it, seriously,” Perez said. “I don’t know why they do that, because players like me — in the big leagues for a long time — we don’t need to play in Venezuela. We don’t have to play. We do because we like our fans. They don’t have a visa to come here to watch you play. That’s why we do that.”

Salvy is always about the fans, and hopefully what he did in this game is a sign of more to come in next year’s World Baseball Classic.

The Royals backstop was a star in the 2023 event, slashing .429/.467/.929 with one home run, four doubles, and six RBI for Venezuela. He even earned All-WBC honors for his efforts. Now, he will captain his home country’s team in his fourth World Baseball Classic.

Who will round out Venezuela’s roster remains to be seen, but Houston Astros mainstay Jose Altuve is already a leader “both on and off the field” for the team, according to Venezuela manager Omar Lopez.

The country could boast a star-studded team, with players like Ronald Acuña Jr., Anthony Santander, and Perez's Royals teammate Maikel Garcia all hailing from Venezuela. The country is ranked fifth by the World Baseball Softball Confederation and should be the favorite in Pool D next spring.

No matter the overarching threads or narrative, it is just so nice to have Perez hitting in-game home runs as the winter weather really settles in. Royals fans know that seeing him locked in this time of year can be a hint of what’s coming. Hopefully, a hot bat in Venezuela follows him through Opening Day, and the veteran captains another postseason trip for his Royals.