SURPRISE, Ariz.
Even before catcher Sal Perez on Tuesday reaped a new contract that figures to mean he’ll be forever Royal, his stature and wealth had brought with it a certain unwelcome trapping.
When Perez returns to his home in Valencia, Venezuela, he is buffered by six bodyguards — typically four who ride with him and two accompanying on motorcycles.
“Everywhere I go,” said Perez, the Most Valuable Player of the 2015 World Series.
If that sounds like a bit much, consider that only a few years ago Valencia native Wilson Ramos of the Washington Nationals was kidnapped and rescued after a gunfight between police and his abductors.