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Perez made his fourth rehab start as the Rochester Red Wings topped the Buffalo Bisons 6-2 in front of 17,380 fans at Coca-Cola Field Friday evening during the traditional Independence Eve celebration with the BPO.

Recovering from a right knee injury, Perez (0-2) was in action for the first time since his June 28 outing with Class-A Brooklyn Cyclones when he allowed just two hits while striking out six and throwing 72 pitches in his five innings of work.

Last pitching for the Bisons on May 26, Perez spent the better part of June back in extended spring training at the Mets complex in Port St. Lucie before heading off for a rehab start with St. Lucie then Brooklyn.

Perez’ last start in Buffalo stood out not so much because of how he performed but more because of the fact he took a nasty tumble off the hill that aggravated the injury and forced him back to extended spring.

Against the Red Wings Friday night Perez was pulled two batters into the sixth inning when he broke the plane on the 90-pitch limit the Mets set for him. Perez threw 92 pitches, 46 for strikes, gave up three earned runs on five hits and four walks. He struck out four while routinely throwing in his normal range of 90-91 MPH.

Though Perez said he felt good and was able to throw with peace of mind that he would not re-injure his knee he was clearly not as aggressive as he should have been, as he shied away from pounding the zone and threw far too many balls against a young Red Wings lineup.

“I feel real good and I’m not thinking about my knee,” said Perez. “I feel strong I think I’m ready, I think I was a little wild but more importantly I’m just throwing.”

Going 25-17 the past two seasons in Queens the New York Mets rewarded Perez with a three-year, $36 million dollar contract this season. But early on Perez did nothing to justify the big bucks as he went 1-2 with a 9.97 ERA with the Mets before going on the DL on May 2 with right patellar tendonitis.

“His command, he was there and gone at times but that’s Ollie,” Bisons manager Ken Oberkfell said of Perez’ outing. “Ollie can pitch that way. He’ll get himself in trouble but he’ll find a way to get himself out of trouble.”

While feeling better physically and getting your touch back are traditionally the core when evaluating success in rehab assignments Perez knows about expectations he had on his shoulders to get people out-especially with a return to the Mets and a start against Los Angeles Dodgers looming on the horizon for Wednesday.

“I feel real strong and I feel ready,” said Perez. “That’s the key, being able to throw back-to-back five inning (games) and feel no pain (the next day).”

Three consecutive hits in the sixth helped pace the Wings offense as Jeff Huber went 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBI. Matt Macri put Rochester (38-40) on the board, 1-0, in the fifth when he drove a fastball that Perez left over the fat part of the plate to deep left field.

Jeff Manship (1-0) worked seven innings as he earned the win in his Triple-A debut.

“He basically stuck it up our rear ends,” Oberkfell said of Manship. Buffalo fell to 26-50.