TAMPA — Last season, Oswald Peraza had a good performance earning a call by the Yankees in September and becoming their ALCS shortstop. Now, he is competing with Anthony Volpe and Isiah Kiner-Falefa to get the shortstop role on Opening Day. This spring, Oswald Peraza has another advantage he didn’t have a year ago. It is his perfect vision.
In Sunday’s game against Baltimore, Oswald Peraza showed off the thing that makes him stand out on the Yankees team: his defense. In the third inning, he made a great stop on a hard ground ball hit by Anthony Bemboom and threw it quickly to oust Daz Cameron.
The Yankees sent the 22-year-old to an eye doctor after he had trouble reading an eye chart. This is the first time Oswald Peraza has worn contact lenses.
“I took one of those tests off the wall and there was something with my left eye, so they wanted me to have it checked out,’’ Oswald Peraza said. “So I went and got contacts.”
Oswald Peraza said that the prescription was for distance and very helpful in the field.
“One thing I can tell the difference is if I’m at shortstop and something happens with PitchCom and the catcher has to put signs down, I can see his fingers much more clearly,’’ Peraza said. “But I can see everything better now.”
And that has given him the confidence to play with more ease. Oswald Peraza’s play on both sides of the ball has shown this spring, as he has stood out on defense and hit well.
“Overall, I see everything better, so that’s gonna give you more of a sense of confidence,’’ Peraza said.
He didn’t get a hit on Sunday and is only 6-for-28 this spring, but Oswald Peraza has been hitting better as of late. In the three games before Sunday, he went 3-for-8 with a double and a home run.
“I don’t know how much it impacts me on offense, but I played all last year without contacts, so I think they will be good there, too,’’ Peraza said. “I believe I have a little more clarity now and I could tell my eyes were tired sometimes when I was hitting last year.”
Oswald Peraza is destined for becoming Yankees shortstop
Before being called up to the Yankees last season, Oswald Peraza still had a.778 OPS in 99 games with Triple-A RailRiders. After that, he had a .832 OPS in 57 games with the Yankees at the end of the season.
Oswald Peraza was signed by the Yankees out of Venezuela in 2016. He had only played eight games above Double-A at the start of last season.
In about a week, he’ll be in the running to be the Yankees’ Opening Day shortstop, as the team gets ready to make that decision before the season starts on March 30 in The Bronx against the Giants.
If he gets the job, Oswald Peraza will be able to thank his new 20/20 vision in part.
“It’s one of those things that if it’s gonna help, why not take advantage of it?” Peraza said. “I’ve enjoyed the results I’ve gotten so far.”
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