Slow(er) and steady wins the race: Braves’ Pérez outduels red-hot Misiorowski

Aesop’s fable, “The Tortoise and the Hare,” came to life on the mound at Truist Park on Friday night.

Flame-throwing Brewers pitcher Jacob Misiorowski faced off with 35-year-old Braves starter Martín Pérez and his sinker, which was clocked at 89 mph. Misiorowski pitched six innings, allowed two runs and punched out seven Braves hitters, but it was Pérez who took home the victory in the Braves’ 3-2 triumph Friday at Truist Park.

Coming off a road trip that Pérez described as a “horror trip” and a rain-affected series against the Giants, the Braves found themselves in a funk entering the opener against the Brewers. Pérez, as he has done for much of the season, helped steer the Braves back on course.

He pitched six innings of one-run ball, allowing six hits, walking two hitters and striking out five.

“It’s not all about lighting up the radar gun, as he shows,” manager Walt Weiss said of Pérez. “If you can command the ball and you can make the ball move late, you can be successful.”

Since being recalled to the big-league roster from Triple-A Gwinnett in mid-April, Pérez has excelled in several different roles for the Braves. Whether it be eating innings in a relief outing or throwing five innings of scoreless ball, Pérez has accepted each challenge the club has thrown at him this season.

Friday, he proved he can also compete head-to-head against one of baseball’s most prolific arms for six innings.

“(He’s) been one of our best starters,” Weiss said. “He’s one of our many, I guess you could say, unsung heroes. The guys that maybe when we were in spring training, we weren’t looking at some of these guys as being the impact players that they’ve been. Martín’s one of them.”