TL;DR The Atlanta Braves face the Detroit Tigers in a key matchup, with Martin PĂ©rez starting for the Braves. PĂ©rez has a 2.70 ERA but may face challenges against the Tigers' lineup, while Casey Mize pitches for Detroit.
WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA - APRIL 22, 2026: Martin Perez #33 of the Atlanta Braves throws a pitch during the fourth inning of a game against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on April 22, 2026 in Washington, District of Columbia. The Braves beat the Nationals, 8-6. (Photo by Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images Martin Perez #33 of the Atlanta Braves throws a pitch during the fourth inning of a game against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on April 22, 2026 in Washington, District of Columbia. The Braves beat the Nationals, 8-6. (Photo by Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images
The Atlanta Braves will be taking on the Detroit Tigers as two first place teams will clash. The Bravesâ offense, who currently lead MLB in runs scored per game, is going to have arguably their toughest test yet as they will be facing a Tigersâ rotation that has been one of the best in MLB thus far.
This evening the Braves will be bringing Martin PĂ©rez to the mound to face the Tigersâ offense that currently sits right in the middle of the pack at fifteenth in MLB in runs scored per game. PĂ©rez has had an interesting run with the Braves, having signed a minors deal before making the squad originally, and then was DFAâd and re-signed already. The interesting part is that even though he has taken that journey, his on-field ERA shows he has been successful. In his 23.1 innings pitched, he holds an ERA of 2.70.
The issue with PĂ©rez has not been with his actual run prevention, but that his underlying metrics show that at some point his is going to have serious regression to the mean with an expected ERA (xERA) of 4.60. Of course, the Braves last year would have loved a fifth starter with a 4.60 ERA compared to what they had, but still, it is not ideal.
PĂ©rez has been fortunate in his left on base percentage this season. League average typically sits around 70.0 to 74.0 percent. He has had a strand rate of 85.9, which is well above the league average and his career average. Odds are he wonât be able to sustain that. He also has been extremely lucky in terms of BABIP. His career average is .305 BABIP against him and this season he is sitting at .197. Factor in the strand rate as well and it is a recipe for his ERA to balloon at some point soon. Hopefully, it will hold off tonight. Even better if it holds off until his injured rotation mates can heal up.
With PĂ©rez spending time in the AL Central, some of the current Tigers players have faced him quite a bit. Javy BĂĄez has twenty at-bats but has been limited to an OPS of .588.
