Perna played third base for the single-A Wheelers. Above him were other third basemen he'd have to get past.
"But," Perna told The Daily News, "with the numbers I'm putting up, there's no way I won't be in Double A next year. With expansion coming up, there are going to be a lot more opportunities. Switch-hitting third basemen with some pop are hard to come by."
Perna actually made AA that year for three games. He never got higher.
Perna's professional career began in 1990, taken by the Reds in the 14th round of the draft, out of Cumberland University. Perna has also been identified as Rob Perna.
Perna's time at Cumberland came after a college career that saw him play for different colleges each of his four years, according to The Daily News. He played at Georgia Southern, Seminole College, Oklahoma State and then Cumberland.
"Having to follow such a long road to get drafted made me a better player," Perna told The Daily News. "It made me fight my way along. I always figured I had more to prove than anybody else."
With the Reds, Perna played his first season between rookie Billings and the Gulf Coast League. Between them, he got into 60 games and hit .300.
He moved to single-A Charleston in 1991, hitting .248 over 136 games. He then earned those three games at AA Chattanooga in 1992, after hitting .301 at Charleston, with 11 home runs.
With that look at AA in 1992, Perna played the entire next season back at high-A, at Winston-Salem. He made Chattanooga again in 1994, for 20 games. He then moved to the Tigers and AA Trenton for 18 games and then 54 at independent Duluth, ending his career.
- Philadelphia Daily News, June 6, 1990: Draft Is Doubly Satisfying For Father Of Reds' Pick
- Philadelphia Daily News, Aug, 18, 1992: Errors Escape Roxborough's Perna
Players/Coaches Featured:1,123
Made the Majors: 662 - 59.0%
Never Made Majors: 461-41.0%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 287
10+ Seasons in the Minors: 172
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