TORONTO (AP) — Miami Marlins right-hander Eury Pérez left Wednesday’s loss at Toronto after four shutout innings when his right hamstring spasmed while he was stretching in the dugout.
Pérez was limbering up to come out for the fifth when his muscle spasmed and he sat down in pain. He was removed from the game and needed assistance from a teammate to descend the dugout steps into the clubhouse.
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Toronto Blue Jays' Kazuma Okamoto (7) is hit by a pitch from Miami Marlins' Eury Pérez during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Miami Marlins pitcher Eury Pérez (39) works against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Miami Marlins pitcher Eury Pérez (39) works against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Miami Marlins pitcher Eury Pérez (39) works against the Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
“I was just having a conversation with my pitching coach and suddenly I felt tightness right there in my leg and I couldn’t get up,” Pérez said through an interpreter. “On a scale from one to 10, I would give it a 10. It was very painful. I knew I was not going to be able to go out there.”
Pérez said he felt a little better after the game, saying the pain had dropped to seven out of 10.
Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said Pérez will undergo imaging on Thursday's off day.
Michael Petersen replaced Pérez, who set a season high by striking out nine before exiting.
Pérez allowed three hits, all singles, and didn’t walk a batter in Miami's 2-1 loss. He threw 73 pitches, including 48 strikes.
“He mixed in everything, certainly had a good heater,” McCullough said. “I saw several up over 100 mph.”
Pérez struck out a career-high 11 against the Mets last September 27, his final start of 2025.
After Pérez hit Toronto slugger Kazuma Okamoto in the back with a first-pitch, 97 mph fastball in the fourth, he appeared to stare into Toronto’s dugout. Blue Jays manager John Schneider yelled at Pérez, but the situation did not escalate.
“There was no intention at all to do that,” Pérez said of hitting Okamoto. “(Schneider) was saying something, I didn’t know exactly what it was, so I was looking at the dugout because they were trying to get my attention.”
Marlins pitchers hit six batters in the three-game series, including four on Tuesday.
“Collectively, as a group, you get tired of it when Oak takes 97 in the back” Schneider said. “(Pérez) threw the ball really well today, though.”
Toronto trailed 1-0 when Pérez left but tied it when Nathan Lukes hit an RBI double off Petersen with two outs in the fifth.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Toronto Blue Jays' Kazuma Okamoto (7) is hit by a pitch from Miami Marlins' Eury Pérez during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Miami Marlins pitcher Eury Pérez (39) works against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Miami Marlins pitcher Eury Pérez (39) works against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
Miami Marlins pitcher Eury Pérez (39) works against the Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)
LEIPZIG, Germany (AP) — Jean-Philippe Mateta scored the only goal as Crystal Palace won its first-ever European trophy by beating Rayo Vallecano 1-0 in the final of the Conference League on Wednesday to give outgoing coach Oliver Glasner the perfect send-off.
Mateta scored on a rebound in the 51st minute after Rayo goalkeeper Augusto Batalla parried Adam Wharton's long-range shot.
Palace's win keeps English teams on track for a sweep of the three main European men’s club competitions.
Aston Villa won the Europa League last week and Arsenal will face Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final on Saturday.
It was a triumphant end to a season which began with Palace in court appealing in vain against being demoted from the second-tier Europa League, the competition it had originally qualified for by winning the FA Cup, in a dispute over ownership rules.
Palace’s win lands it a Europa League spot for next season, much to the delight of Glasner, who said Wednesday he wanted to watch the team’s progress on TV next season.
Palace fans set the tone before kickoff with a giant banner like an airport departures board. Europa League: Boarding.
Glasner announced in January he’d leave at the end of the season when his contract expires. The Austrian has been in charge since February 2024 and led Palace to its first major trophy last season in the FA Cup. It’s not clear yet where he’ll go next.
It was the third time in the Conference League’s five-season history that an English team lifted the trophy after West Ham in 2023 and Chelsea a year ago. Some Rayo fans were seen in tears at the final whistle after a first major final for a team so often in the shadow of its neighbors Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.
Mateta's goal lit up the final after a cagey first half with no shots on target from either team.
He showed lightning-quick reactions to knock in the rebound after an initial long-range shot from Wharton, who returned to Palace's lineup after an ankle knock against Arsenal last week and was a commanding presence in midfield.
Yeremy Pino came within a whisker of making it 2-0 soon after when he hit a free kick that bounced off one goal post, along the goal line and away off the second post.
Rayo's best chance came early on when Alemão skewed a volley wide of the post off a cross from Pep Chavarria. Tyrick Mitchell missed the target with a diving header for Palace at the end of the first half.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Crystal Palace's Evann Guessanda celebrate next to Rayo's Pathe Ciss after the Europa Conference League final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig, Germany, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Crystal Palace players celebrate after the Europa Conference League final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig, Germany, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Crystal Palace's Jean-Philippe Mateta, left, celebrates with teammates after scoring his side's opening goal during the Europa Conference League final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig, Germany, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Crystal Palace's Jean-Philippe Mateta celebrates after scoring during the Europa Conference League final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig, Germany, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Crystal Palace's Jean-Philippe Mateta celebrates after scoring during the Europa Conference League final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig, Germany, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Robert Michael/dpa via AP)
Crystal Palace's Adam Wharton during a training session in London, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (John Walton/PA via AP)
Fans gather outside the stadium before the Europa Conference League final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig, Germany, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
Rayo's players work out during a training session ahead of the Europa Conference League final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig, Germany, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
