In his last start, Jason Vargas threw a pitch in the sixth inning for the first time in 2018. Sunday night in Williamsport, Vargas made it two consecutive starts as he pitched 5.1 innings.
Though he gave up two runs, which came in the 6th inning because of a Carlos Santana two-run home run, he cruised for the first five innings thanks to solid command and change of speeds.
“We got off to a great start, keeping the ball down and getting some quick outs,” Vargas said after the game. “That put us off on a good roll and it was nice to have a second start having command of the game.”
Though he was unable to secure his second quality start of the season in 14 outings, he did get the win, thanks to plenty of run support from his team in the 8-2 win.
The game was in Williamsport, PA in front of 2,500 little leaguers. While the kids surely wanted to see blazing fastballs and devastating sliders from deGrom, Syndergaard, or Wheeler, they instead got a more relatable performance. Vargas was dominant through the first five innings, teaching the kids a valuable lesson: You don’t need to throw 100 mph to get MLB hitters out. If you hit your spots, change speeds, and keep the batters off balance, you can succeed.
“I thought it was a great atmosphere,” Vargas said. “It’s definitely an unusual one, something different. We had some really cool interactions with the kids when we were in the on-deck circle, and they were having a great time.”
Vargas, 35, is 3-8 on the season with a 7.67 ERA and 5.99 FIP. In 58.2 innings, he’s allowed 78 hits while striking out 47 and walking 23, registering a 1.722 WHIP. He is scheduled to start this Friday against the struggling Washington Nationals.
