Was the Perry already a specialized ASW ship?

Should the United States have made the Perry class into a specialized anti-submarine vessel?

It already was: its hull sonar, towed array, helicopters, and torpedoes made the Perry fundamentally an ASW ship with additional capabilities.

The Perry mission fit already centered on anti-submarine warfare. Hull sonar, a towed array, torpedoes, and embarked helicopters supplied its strongest sensors and weapons. Air-defence and anti-ship systems supplemented that submarine-hunting core. A proposed ASW conversion would therefore repeat the historical mission fit rather than create a new specialization.