Eye exam helps turn around Perez

ST. LOUIS -- Baseballs are no longer a blur to Eduardo Perez.

"I can actually see the seams on the ball," the St. Louis Cardinals' 32-year-old backup first baseman and power-hitting pinch-hitter said. "You don't know how good that feels."

Perez signed as a free agent in February after spending last season with the Hanshin Tigers of the Japanese Central League. There, he hit just .222 with three home runs and 19 RBIs in 167 at-bats before undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery.

But the most important surgery he had came in Puerto Rico, shortly before spring training. Perez had lasik surgery performed on his eyes.

"Man, I was almost blind," he said. "I was wearing hard contacts to see and I just didn't like them. I thought I could do better. So, I had the lasik surgery. It was like a revelation. It was great. I could see without contacts."

Perez made the ballclub out of spring training, where he hit .267 with three home runs and 13 RBIs.

But early this season, Perez struggled. At one point, his average dropped to .130.

"I didn't know what to think," Perez said. "I didn't think I was seeing the ball very well. But eyes aren't like ears. You know when you can't hear but your eyes are a little trickier."

Finally, Perez scheduled an appointment with his St. Louis optometrist.

"He asked me how I was doing?" Perez said. "I was embarrassed to tell him what I was hitting. I finally did and he said he wasn't surprised. I found out my vision had gone to 20-35 and 20-30. While that is fine for people, it's not so good for a ballplayer."

His doctor explained it is common for people who had lasik surgery to experience a setback in their vision about three months afterward.

"I thought it was the best I could see," Perez said. "I'm so glad I went for that eye exam. Now, I can see the rotation of the ball."

Outfitted with soft contacts to bring his eyesight back to 20-20, Perez had found new life at the plate. He has since brought his average up almost 100 points to .226, with seven home runs and 17 RBIs in just 94 at-bats.

"He can see now," St. Louis manager Tony La Russa said. "Since he got his contacts, he is seeing the ball so much better. Plus, that gives him confidence each trip to the plate. That's important to a hitter."

Perez agreed.

"I feel good every time I hit," he said, "whether it's as a pinch hitter or as a starter. I can't wait to get up there."

Perez emerges as La Russa's top pinch hitter in late-game situations.

"It's tough to be a pinch hitter," La Russa said. "Eddie goes about it the right way. He stays in the game and is involved that way. He's always going back to stretch and swing a bat to stay loose. He's ready to go when I need him."

Coming through in the clutch is important to Perez. On Friday against the Cubs, La Russa pulled starter Chuck Finley, who had thrown just 69 pitches through six innings, to bat Perez with the Cardinals clinging to a 5-3 lead.

"I thought we had a chance to blow the game open," La Russa said.

The move paid off. Perez smacked a three-run home run off Jon Lieber, giving the Cardinals an 8-3 lead.

"It always feels good doing that," Perez said.