Perlman, Jon

Jonathan Samuel Perlman

Born to a Jewish father (according to The Big Book of Jewish Baseball, he never considered himself a Jew), Perlman played in the major leagues with the Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, and Cleveland Indians in the 1980s.

Birth and Death Dates:
b. December 13, 1956

Career Highlights:
Born in Dallas, Perlman played at Baylor University in the 1970s before being selected 12th overall in the first round of the 1979 amateur draft by the Chicago Cubs. After spending six years in the minors, Perlman finally made his major league debut at the age of 28, on September 6, 1985. He appeared in relief six times that year, chalking up a 11.42 ERA with a 1-0 record.
Following the 1985 season, Perlman was traded to the San Francisco Giant organization and spent two years in their minor league system before receiving another chance at the majors. He had improved during his tenure in the minors and appeared ten times in middle relief with a 3.97 ERA. The Giants won the National League Western Division and lost the NLCS to St. Louis 4-3, though Perlman did not pitch. Two of his teammates that year were fellow pitchers Mike LaCoss and catcher Bob Melvin.
San Francisco cut Perlman on March 29, 1988, but he was quickly signed as a free agent by the Cleveland Indians only nine days later. During the 1988 season, he played in ten games and had an ERA of 5.49 over 19.2 innings (a career high) with an 0-2 record. The Indians suffered the worst record in baseball that year (61-101) and Perlman was released on December 20, 1988. He retired following the season.

Career Dates:
Perlman played for the Chicago Cubs, 1985; the San Francisco Giants, 1987; and the Cleveland Indians, 1988.

Position:
Pitcher

Physical description:
6"0, 185 lbs.
Pitched left-handed and batted left-handed

Career Statistics:
Wins: 1
Losses: 2
ERA: 6.35
Games: 26
Games Started: 0
Innings Pitched: 39.2
Hits Allowed: 46
Bases-on-Balls: 23
Strike Outs: 17
Batting
At-bats: 1
Hits: 0
Home Runs: 0
Batting Average: 0.00
Fielding Statistics
Put-outs: 3
Assists: 10
Errors: 1
Double Plays: 0
Fielding avg: .929

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References:
The Baseball Encyclopedia: Eighth Edition (New York: McMillan, 1990)
The Big Book of Jewish Baseball: An Illustrated Encyclopedia and Anecdotal History, by Peter S. Horvitz and Joachim Horvitz (New York: S.P.I. Books, 2001)