On a night where his team attempted to split a series with one of the beasts of the National League, Jason Vargas did his part, putting together one of he better performances of his career with the New York Mets. The Metropolitans offense though was put to rest by Hyun-Jin Ryu in a 2-0 loss.
Vargas, 36, gave up one run in the first inning on a double to Max Muncy that scored Chris Taylor, from there though Jason would close the door on the offensive juggernaut that is the Dodgers offense. The Mets’ pitcher would go on to toss seven strong innings, allowing just the one run on six hits while walking three and striking out six.
Jason spoke about his performance after the game and if knowing that the bullpen has been taxed over the past three games changes his preparation for Thursday night’s start.
“I was aware of who had pitched and when they had pitched in this series,” Vargas said. “That’s definitely something that we’re all cognizant of. But I don’t think it affects the way that I prepare, or get ready to go into a game and think about how deep I’m going to go.” (MLB)
Vargas looked confident on the mound, sporting a nasty curveball that had some Dodgers fooled.
Jason Vargas throws a 69 mph curveball.
JOE DAVIS: Nice pitch pic.twitter.com/fK5RjbgIw6
— Sung Min Kim (@sung_minkim) May 31, 2019
With speculation running rampant within the Mets’ clubhouse that Los Angeles was somehow stealing signs, Vargas kept that in the back of his mind and did speak of making some adjustments due to this.
“I had a pretty good idea, based on what I could see from video,” Vargas said. “It was something I would take advantage of, too, so it was something we had to combat.” (NY Post)
Vargas did not go into too many details on the matter, but if he did figure it out, it seemed to work well for himself in a game where he tossed 98 pitches where only 54 of which landed for strikes. He now has a 2.40 ERA in his last six starts, though he’s averaging only five innings a game in that span.
The Mets can only hope that Vargas can build off a terrific start against of the best teams in the league this season. If he could, it could mean big things for the Metropolitans.
