Oliver Perez's ceiling

Jim Callis at Baseball America writes about Oliver Perez and his potential:

Few lefties in baseball have the ceiling of the 24-year-old Perez, but he has melted down since going 12-10, 2.98 with 239 strikeouts in 196 innings in 2004. He went 2-10, 6.63 in 15 starts, prompting his demotion to Triple-A Indianapolis. In 76 innings, he had a 61-51 K-BB ratio, .296 opponent average and 13 homers allowed. Those numbers just don't make sense for a guy who can throw in the mid-90s with a tight curveball, but Perez' stuff and command have slipped for no obvious reason. Still he's a worthwhile gamble for the Mets. Perez, who avoided arbitration by signing a one-year, $1.9 million contract, will be arbitration-eligible again during the offseason. He has a career record of 29-40, 4.56 in 105 games.