Delvin Pérez Dippini (born November 24, 1998) is a Puerto Rican professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

for the Milwaukee Milkmen of the

American Association of Professional Baseball The American Association of Professional Baseball is an independent professional baseball league founded in 2005. It operates in the central United States and Canada, mostly in cities not served by Major League Baseball teams or their minor ...

Amateur career

Pérez attended the International Baseball Academy in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. He started playing shortstop at 14–15 years old after starting out as a

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. During the fall of 2015 he played in the World Wood Bat Association World Championship in

Jupiter, Florida Jupiter is the northernmost town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. According to the 2020 US Census, the town had a population of 61,047. It is 84 miles north of Miami and 15 miles north of West Palm Beach, Florida, West Palm Beach. ...

. Pérez was considered one of the top prospects for the

2016 Major League Baseball draft The 2016 Major League Baseball draft began on June 9, 2016, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2015 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks were distributed for players who ...

, being compared to

Carlos Correa Carlos Javier Correa Oppenheimer Jr. (born September 22, 1994) is a Puerto Rican professional baseball shortstop for the Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Houston Astros, who selected him f ...

. Leading up to the draft he received help from former MLB player Carlos Delgado. Prior to the

2016 MLB draft The 2016 Major League Baseball draft began on June 9, 2016, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2015 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks were distributed for players who ...

, Pérez won the Most Valuable Player award in the Víctor Pellot Excellence Tournament, guiding his team to the championship by batting .556 (including several extra-base hits) and leading the tournament in RBIs and runs scored before the highest ranked prospects in Puerto Rico. On the first day of the draft, media reports claimed that Pérez had failed a drug test for

performance enhancing drugs Performance-enhancing substances (PESs), also known as performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), are substances that are used to improve any form of activity performance in humans. Many substances, such as anabolic steroids, can be used to improve ath ...

(PEDs). His agent, Melvin Román, was vocal in denouncing the news as gossip and insisted that his client had not failed any tests. Pérez was selected 23rd overall in the first round by the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

in the draft.

Professional career

St. Louis Cardinals

After signing, Pérez made his professional debut with the

Rookie-level Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National L ...

Gulf Coast League Cardinals The Florida Complex League Cardinals or FCL Cardinals are a rookie league affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, competing in the Florida Complex League of Minor League Baseball. Prior to 2021, the team was known as the Gulf Coast League Cardinals. ...

where he batted .294 with a .745 OPS and 12 stolen bases. In 2017, Pérez began the season with the

Johnson City Cardinals The Johnson City Cardinals were a Minor League Baseball team based in Johnson City, Tennessee. The team was affiliated with the St. Louis Cardinals organization from 1975 through 2020 and played in the Rookie League, Rookie-level Appalachian Leagu ...

of the Rookie-level

Appalachian League The Appalachian League is a Collegiate summer baseball, collegiate summer baseball league that operates in the Appalachian regions of Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina. Designed for rising freshmen and sophomores using wooden ...

. However, after slashing only .140/.275/.186 in 13 games, he was demoted back to the Gulf Coast League. He returned to Johnson City in late July. In 34 total games between both clubs, he batted .203 with nine RBIs and five stolen bases. He spent 2018 with the

State College Spikes The State College Spikes are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in State College, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at Medlar Field on the campus of Pennsylvania State University. The team was fo ...

of the Low–A

New York–Penn League The New York–Penn League (NYPL) was a Minor League Baseball league that operated in the northeastern United States from 1939 to 2020. Classified as a Class A Short Season league, its season started in June, after major-league teams signed th ...

, batting .213 with one home run, 21 RBIs, and eight stolen bases over 64 games. Pérez spent 2019 with the

Peoria Chiefs The Peoria Chiefs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. The team was established in 1983 as the Peoria Suns. They are located in Peoria, Illinois, and are named for the Pe ...

of the Single–A

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

, with whom he was named an All-Star. Over 118 games, he slashed .269/.329/.325 with one home run, thirty RBIs, and 22 stolen bases. Pérez did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Over the 2020-21 offseason, Pérez gained over twenty pounds and changed his diet, attributing his struggles throughout his professional career to his "skinny" figure. He spent the 2021 season with the

Springfield Cardinals The Springfield Cardinals are a Minor League Baseball team based in Springfield, Missouri. They are members of the Texas League's North Division and serve as the Double-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. The Springfield Cardinals began pl ...

of the

Double-A Central The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

, slashing .265/.322/.339 with four home runs, 23 RBIs, and 24 stolen bases over 98 games. He returned to Springfield to begin the 2022 season. He elected free agency following the season on November 10, 2022.

New York Yankees

On December 26, 2022, Pérez signed a minor league deal with the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

. In 19 games for the Double–A

Somerset Patriots The Somerset Patriots are an American professional Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team based in Bridgewater, New Jersey. They are the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They compete in the Eastern League (EL), known as the Double-A Nort ...

, he struggled to a .170/.296/.305 batting line with 2 home runs, 5 RBI, and 9 stolen bases. On July 13, 2023, Pérez was released by the Yankees organization.

Milwaukee Milkmen

On January 17, 2025, Pérez signed with the Milwaukee Milkmen of the

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perez, Delvin 1998 births Living people Baseball players from San Juan, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican baseball players Baseball shortstops Gulf Coast Cardinals players Johnson City Cardinals players State College Spikes players Peoria Chiefs players Somerset Patriots players Milwaukee Milkmen players