CHICAGO (AP) — Martín Pérez figured he had enough left to remain in the game a little longer. He also knew he couldn't go the distance.
The veteran left-hander threw six no-hit innings and tied a career high with nine strikeouts in a sparkling Chicago debut, helping the White Sox roll past the Minnesota Twins 9-0 on Monday.
“They asked me how I feel,” Pérez said. “I told them I feel great. But I was honest, too. I mean, there's no way I could go three more innings. It's too early. It's a long season.”
Pérez began his afternoon by getting Byron Buxton to ground out on the game's first pitch. He ended it by catching Ty France looking at a 2-2 cutter.
Pérez threw 93 pitches and walked three. He retired the first 11 batters before walking Ryan Jeffers and hitting France on the next pitch, but got out of that jam when he caught Jose Miranda looking at a 3-2 cutter.
Pérez kept the Twins off balance with cutters, sinkers, changeups and curves. He consistently hit the corners, but never hit 90 mph.
“I don’t have the velocity anymore, but I know how to pitch, I know how to move the ball,” he said.
The Twins’ only hits were singles by Willi Castro and Jeffers in the seventh and eighth against Mike Vasil in his major league debut.
Pérez, who turns 34 on Friday, was an All-Star with Texas in 2022 and helped the Rangers win the World Series the following year. He pitched for Pittsburgh and San Diego last season before signing a $5 million, one-year contract with Chicago in January.
The White Sox sure will take more performances like this.
Pérez joined Boston’s Hideo Nomo in 2001 as the only major leaguers since 1901 to toss six or more hitless innings while striking out at least nine while debuting with a new team.
“That's Martín. He knows how to pitch,” said White Sox manager Will Venable, Boston's bench coach in 2021 when Pérez was with the Red Sox. “I've seen it a lot. To have him continue this nice run of starting pitching was great.”
Through four games, the White Sox have a a 0.75 ERA. Their starters have combined for 23 innings without an earned run, the longest stretch to start a season in franchise history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The previous mark was 21 in 1947. Chicago also matched Toronto in 2019, San Francisco in 2013 and Milwaukee in 1976 for the longest season-opening streak in the major leagues since 1913, according to Elias.
The terrific outing by Pérez comes on the heels of a stellar showing by the starters in the season-opening series against the Los Angeles Angels. Rookie Sean Burke went six scoreless innings in an opening day win, and though the White Sox dropped the next two games, the starters did their job. Jonathan Cannon tossed five shutout innings in Saturday's 1-0 loss, and Davis Martin allowed two unearned runs in six innings on Sunday.
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Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Martín Pérez throws against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning of a baseball game in Chicago, Monday, March 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Martín Pérez, right, celebrates with catcher Matt Thaiss, left, as they go to the dugout after the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in Chicago, Monday, March 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
LISSE, Netherlands (AP) — Nestled among tulip fields not far from Amsterdam, the world-famous Keukenhof garden has opened for the spring, welcoming camera-wielding visitors to its increasingly selfie-friendly grounds.
On a sunny day, the paths, park benches and cafes are crowded with tourists taking photos and selfies with one of the Netherlands’ most iconic products — the tulip. Those kinds of pics, posted on social media, are what drew Austrian lawyer Daniel Magnus.
“Whenever you see the kind of pictures which were taken from an influencer, they make something with you. You get a new impression of new locations, traditions, people and so on …. You want also to be there,” Magnus told The Associated Press.
Magnus had just finished taking his own photos on a small boat, staged in one of the park’s canals for visitors to take their own Instagrammable images.
Staff plant and nurture a staggering 7 million flower bulbs to ensure visitors who flock to the Keukenhof from around the world all get to see a vibrant spectacle during the just eight weeks the garden is open.
In recent years, the garden has increasingly catered to the public’s thirst for social media content and created spaces where guests are encouraged to pose.
Selfie spots include flower archways, pink velvet couches and another Dutch classic - oversized wooden clogs.
The Keukenhof’s own social media channels have some suggestions about the best locations and the Dutch tourism board even advises on how to get the perfect tulip selfie.
“Make your image come alive and place the subject of your photo slightly off-centre. This will make your photo look more dynamic,” the Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions says.
The Keukenhof garden’s more than 1 million expected visitors don’t need too much encouragement to snap pics among the tulips, hyacinths, daffodils and myriad other flowers. The blossoms are meticulously handplanted throughout its manicured lawns by a small army of gardeners.
“There’s always something blooming. I think that’s the reason why everyone is happy. There’s also always something to see,” gardener Patrick van Dijk told the AP.
Not everyone is always happy with tourists taking photos. Some flower farmers have put up signs and barriers to deter aspiring influencers from trampling tulips in nearby fields.
Farmers use acrylic cloth for insulation to grow tulips earlier in the season, near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
Farmers use acrylic cloth for insulation to grow tulips earlier in the season near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
The mail man passes flower fields in bloom on his daily round, near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
People visit flower fields in bloom near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
People work in the flower fields near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
Farmers use acrylic cloth for insulation to grow tulips earlier in the season, near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
Farmers use acrylic cloth for insulation to grow tulips earlier in the season, near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
People visit flower fields in bloom near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
Farmers use acrylic cloth for insulation to grow tulips earlier in the season near Lisse, Netherlands, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
A woman poses for a picture at the Keukenhof flower garden in Lisse, Netherlands, Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Molly Quell)
An employee plants tulips at the Keukenhof flower garden in Lisse, Netherlands, Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Molly Quell)
Tourists visit the Keukenhof flower garden in Lisse, Netherlands, Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Molly Quell)
