On March 5, just before Spring Break, Verrado High School welcomed back Blake Perkins, a former student and standout baseball player, for a special jersey retirement ceremony.

Now a professional baseball player for the Milwaukee Brewers, Perkins returned to the Vipers’ home field with his wife to celebrate his accomplishments. Following the ceremony, Perkins threw the first pitch at the game, took the time to reconnect with former coaches and staff, and was kind enough take some photos and answer questions.

Perkins, a 2015 graduate of Verrado High, was passionate about baseball from an early age. He played all four years of high school baseball and was drafted directly from Verrado by the Washington Nationals in the 2015 MLB Draft. As the 69th overall pick in the second round, Perkins quickly made his mark in the baseball world. He played with the Nationals from 2015 to 2018, then spent time with the New York Yankees organization before joining the Milwaukee Brewers.

When asked about his path to baseball, Perkins shared, “Honestly, I think my parents made me play a lot of sports growing up, and I just always gravitated towards baseball. The intricacies of the game stood out to me. After middle school, baseball was all I cared about, so I stuck with it.”

To honor Perkins, Verrado High School hung his retired jersey on the side of the baseball field, recognizing his impressive career. When asked about his choice of jersey number, Perkins explained, “I don’t really remember, but I loved the number two. I think 12 was probably next because two might have been taken.”

A fun fact about Perkins is that he is the only MLB player in the last 40 years to make a direct outfield assist to cut down a possible tying run at the plate, ending the game. He achieved this remarkable feat twice with the Brewers — once in 2024 against the Reds and again last year against the Mets.

Now in his third season as the center fielder for the Brewers, Perkins continues to make an impact in Major League Baseball. We wish him continued success and hope to see him back at Verrado soon!