pop @{[ sort qw(a f e b) ]}
(Sort, make an array and a reference to it, dereference it, get the last item.)

would be

( sort qw(a f e b) )[-1]
(Sort, get the last item.)

min/minstr/max/maxstr is both shorter, less work, and more straightfoward, but it is not nearly as flexible.

maxstr qw(a f e b)
(Get max item.)