DENVER (AP) — Brewers starting pitcher Freddy Peralta spent 30 minutes Wednesday standing in the outfield grass at Coors Field chatting it up with a Colorado Rockies reliever.
It’s the same reliever with whom he went for coffee hours earlier and dined with the night before.
Simply another chance to catch up with his younger brother, Luis.
The brothers from the Dominican Republic are taking full advantage of every opportunity to talk over a three-game series in Denver. Although they chat virtually every day, there’s nothing like face-to-face time. And while mom and dad couldn’t make it to Denver, the family is planning a reunion when Colorado plays at Milwaukee in late June.
“We’re a very close family,” said Freddy Peralta, 28. “It’s very special for me to spend time with him. I enjoy all these moments, because we never know for how long we are going to be (together in the majors). This is a dream coming true for us.”
The brothers certainly had plenty to discuss Tuesday night after Freddy went five solid innings and allowed one run to pick up his first win of the season. The plan was to find a restaurant somewhere downtown. But Luis invited him back to his apartment for homemade arepas, a popular Latin American flatbread stuffed with all sorts of fillings.
“They were so good,” Freddy said.
Same with the company, which is why they met for coffee before Wednesday’s game.
Freddy beams when talking about his 24-year-old brother. This is the kid who used to follow Freddy to the baseball fields and the kid he used to smash grounders at with all his power, just to see how well he could handle them. The kid who means so much to him.
“He wants to be kind of like me — a hard worker, and wanting to learn,” Freddy said. “He’s always asking people around him, players around him, how to get better. That’s very impressive, especially at his age, a young guy, asking for help. He’s such a competitor.”
For that, Luis knows where to give credit.
“(Freddy) taking care of me all the time, taking me to the field, being disciplined in the game,” Luis said through a translator. “I learned that from my brother.”
Freddy began his baseball odyssey by signing as an amateur free agent with Seattle in 2013. On Dec. 9, 2015, the Mariners traded him along with two other pitchers to Milwaukee for Adam Lind. Freddy is now in his eighth season with the Brewers, going 54-37 with a 3.75 ERA.
Each season when he came home, Freddy would take Luis to workouts and practices with him. An outfielder at the time, Luis began focusing on pitching at around 15.
“It was the right decision,” Freddy said of the switch with a laugh.
Luis was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2017 before being traded to the Rockies last July. He’s gone 1-1 with a 2.40 ERA in 19 appearances out of the bullpen. He’s leaned on his brother for advice, too, especially last season as a rookie.
“He’s a nice guy, but I made sure he understood to be a nice guy. If (veterans) ask you to do something, just do it,” Freddy recounted. “I told him, ‘Just be yourself whenever you come to the field. … Be nice and be humble.’ He’s that way. I just remind him just in case. I’m very proud of him.”
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