Luis Perdomo Signs With NPB’s Chiba Lotte Marines

Righty reliever Luis Perdomo has signed with the Chiba Lotte Marines to play the 2023 season in Japan, per ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel. The deal reportedly comes with a $1.3MM guarantee and incentives that could boost the total to $1.8MM. Perdomo is a client of CAA Sports.

Perdomo pitched for the Brewers in 2022, posting a 3.80 ERA (105 ERA+) and 4.80 FIP across 23 2/3 innings in 14 appearances. While his top-level results were slightly above average, he posted a career-low strikeout rate in 2022, which implies there may have been some good luck baked into his ERA when combined with his significantly higher FIP. The Brewers non-tendered him earlier this offseason.

Prior to joining the Brewers during the 2020-21 offseason on a minor league contract, Perdomo had been on the Padres for parts of five seasons. He struggled mightily in a swing role from 2016-2018, posting a 5.40 ERA (75 ERA+) and 4.56 FIP in 355 innings across those three seasons. The most successful season of his big league career came in 2019, when he posted an ERA of 4.00 (105 ERA+) and a FIP of 3.60 across 72 innings of mostly relief work. He struggled again in the shortened 2020 season, however, with ERA and FIP marks both well above 5.00.

At just 29 years old, Perdomo now is set to follow in the footsteps of many other fringe major leaguers and attempt to establish himself in Japan before attempting to secure another state-side contract.