On the farm: Yankees prospect Oswald Peraza continues to excel after promotion

For shortstop prospect Oswald Peraza, there’s only one thing that could make realizing his dream of making it to the major leagues even sweeter.

Doing so with the team he grew up rooting for back in his homeland of Barquisimeto, Venezuela — the Yankees.

Five years after signing as an international free agent for $175,000, Peraza finds himself thriving with the team’s Double-A affiliate, the Somerset Patriots, and ranked the No. 4 prospect in the organization by MLB Pipeline.

"I signed when I was 16 years old and I was excited when they brought me in and I looked at all the coaches; I got to know everyone in the organization," Peraza, 21, told Newsday via translator on Thursday. "I was excited because I was always a Yankees fan. After that I just started going through my process and getting to where I need to be."

Since being called up to Somerset on June 8, the 6-foot, 165-pound Peraza has continued producing at a quality rate. Through Friday, he’s hitting .280 with six home runs, 12 doubles, 18 RBIs, 34 runs and 11 stolen bases in 50 games.

"When it comes to the hitting side," Peraza said, "I’m trying to concentrate more and make sure that I understand how to hit the breaking balls and make sure I focus a little more in the batter’s box and making sure I make better decisions there."

While he’s receiving plenty of instruction at Somerset, Peraza also made the most of his opportunity to learn from his fellow countryman, current Yankees shortstop Gleyber Torres, during spring training earlier this year.

"I got to work with Gleyber in the field a lot and pick his brain," Peraza said. "He tried to tell me how to do things and create a routine. When we were in the dugout I asked him a lot of questions, like how to prepare, what he does, what his mentality is like in the batter’s box, what his everyday routine is like. Things like that."

Peraza said watching the immediate success of former teammate and righthanded starter Luis Gil, who struck out six over six scoreless innings in his Yankees debut on Tuesday, has continued to push him harder during his own journey.

"It’s very exciting to see someone like Luis Gil a few days ago do a really good job in the big leagues," Peraza said. "And that’s really good motivation. I played with him when we were in the lower levels together and we developed together. To see the development he’s made is something that’s really exciting."