Perez Delivers Big Hit For Giants After Learning Of Friend's Death In Car Wreck
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) - Juan Perez entered Sunday's Giants game with a heavy heart. He entered the game as a pinch runner just after learning that his friend - top St. Louis Cardinals prospect Oscar Taveras - was killed in a car wreck in the Dominican Republic.
Just two weeks ago, Taveras blasted a key home run for the Cardinals to help beat the Giants in game two of the National League Championship Series. He was considered by many as the best St. Louis hitting prospect in a decade, and was seen as a future star. Perez knew him from playing winter baseball together in the Dominican Republic, where Perez became friends with Taveras' family.
News that Taveras and his girlfriend had died in a solo car crash in the Dominican Republic reached Perez in the clubhouse.
"I didn't believe it," Perez said after the game. "I checked my phone...I saw a text message right away."
A short time later entered the game as a pinch runner with the Giants leading 2-0. He didn't score, but he later made an excellent catch in left field and came to bat with two runners on in the 8th inning against Royals reliever Wade Davis, who had given up only a handful of extra base hits all year. Here's what happened:
Perez had just one hit during the regular season with runners in scoring position. On Thursday he missed a three run home run by inches, but still managed to put game five of the World Series away for the Giants by driving in two. He talked to reporters after the game about the emotional night, and what he remembers about Taveras:
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