Juan Pérez Pérez

Juan Pérez Pérez

• Born September 18, 1951 in Camagüey, Camagüey Cuba
• Died October 17, 2013

Biographical Information

Juan Pérez Pérez is the only pitcher to throw three no-hitters in Cuba; he also added one in international competition.

Pérez threw his first no-hitter on February 22, 1973, for Camagüey against the Serranos. He went 1-0 with a 0.95 ERA in the 1973 Amateur World Series, with a no-hitter against Venezuela. Juan led the 1973-1974 Serie Nacional with a 1.13 ERA (only 19 earned runs in 151 1/3 IP and won the Serie Nacional Most Valuable Pitcher Award. He also threw his second no-hitter, on April 25, 1974, against Oriente.

Pérez had a 3-0, 0.00 record in the 1974 Central American and Caribbean Games, leading in both wins (tied with Héctor Flores) and ERA and finishing second in Ks (7 behind future big leaguer Silvio Martinez). He did not come by his wins easily, beating Silver Medalist Dominican Republic twice (their only two losses in 10 games) and also topping Venezuela. He allowed 16 hits and 8 walks in 22 1/3 IP, fanning 22. He also was 1 for 8 with a double, run, two sacrifice flies and two RBI. With the Ganaderos, he tossed a no-hitter on January 19, 1975 against the Citricultores. He led the 1974-1975 Serie Nacional with five shutouts. He had a 2-0, 0.00 record in the 1975 Pan American Games, again leading an event in ERA.

Overall, he went 89-58 with 8 saves, a 1.86 ERA and .190 opponent average in 228 games in Cuba. He completed 81 of 167 starts. Through 2010, he ranked 4th in Cuban history in ERA, behind only José Antonio Huelga, Roberto Valdés and Manuel Hurtado.

Sources: 2005 Guia Official de Beisbol, A History of Cuban Baseball by Peter Bjarkman