Seeing double: Carlos Pérez brothers face off

This story was excerpted from Martín Gallegos’ A’s Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

OAKLAND -- It was an unforgettable weekend for Carlos Pérez and Carlos Pérez.

No, that is not a typo.

A’s catcher Carlos Pérez squared off against Carlos Pérez, his younger brother and catcher for the White Sox, who was called up ahead of Friday’s three-game series opener at the Coliseum. For the first time in their careers, the two shared a baseball field as big leaguers.

“It felt nice seeing him on the other side,” the elder Pérez said on Friday night. “When he got called up, he told me it was a chance to play against me. I’m just excited to see him playing. It’s really cool.”

Born six years apart, the two brothers have different middle names. There is a third brother named Carlos. Their father and grandfather? Also named Carlos.

Carlos Eduardo Pérez is the 32-year-old A’s catcher and Major League veteran of five seasons. Carlos Jesús Pérez is a 26-year-old who signed with Chicago out of Venezuela as a teenager and grinded through the Minors before receiving his first call to the Majors in 2022.

The A’s captured the unique moment. Before Sunday’s series finale, Carlos and Carlos positioned themselves behind home plate to receive a pair of ceremonial first pitches from each of the elder Pérez’s two children -- Marcela and Mateo.

Prior to this series, the last time the two brothers had played against each other came in the Venezuelan Winter League. The younger Pérez recalled that game, remembering that he entered it as a pinch-hitter while his big brother was catching.

Sure enough, the exact same scenario played out in their first big league game. In the eighth inning of the A's extra-inning win over Chicago on Saturday, Carlos Jesús came up as a pinch-hitter, while Carlos Eduardo was behind the plate for Oakland.

"Even before I signed, one of my dreams was to play with him or against him at the same level,” Carlos Jesús Pérez said through White Sox interpreter Billy Russo. “We were able to do that in Venezuela, and now we have the chance to do it here. Hopefully, at some point, we're able to play on the same team, too."

If the two ever do end up playing on the same team in the Majors, it will have been made possible by Carlos Eduardo’s ongoing career rejuvenation. Having not appeared in a Major League game since 2018, the elder Pérez was set to play with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League this season before signing a Minor League contract with the A’s during the final week of Spring Training and landing a spot on the Opening Day roster. He has established himself as Oakland’s backup catcher and a valuable resource for the younger players on the club.

“That’s a pretty great moment for both of these guys,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said. “Let’s talk a little bit about [our] Carlos Pérez. Think about this. If we hadn’t signed him, he’d be in the Mexican League on a team probably hitting 30 homers. I couldn’t be more happier for anybody on the roster right now, for the success he’s having and the quiet leadership he provides in there for these young guys.”