Report: Mets, Vargas agree to 2-year, $16M deal
The New York Mets' busy offseason continued Friday, as the club has reportedly agreed to a two-year, $16-million contract with veteran left-hander Jason Vargas, sources told Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports.
Vargas' deal also includes a club option for 2020, and he can earn up to an additional $1.5 million in innings-based incentives each year.
In 2017, after making just three starts the season prior following Tommy John surgery, Vargas dazzled out of the gate with the Kansas City Royals, authoring a 2.62 ERA with a 1.15 WHIP over his first 17 starts en route to his first career All-Star nomination. He came apart in the second half, though, as his name swirled in trade rumors, stumbling to a 6.38 ERA while serving up 16 home runs over his final 73 1/3 innings of the season. All told, Vargas finished the campaign with a 4.16 ERA and 1.33 WHIP, having managed 1.6 WAR in his 32 starts.
Over parts of 12 seasons in the big leagues, Vargas - who made two starts for New York in 2007 - owns a 4.17 ERA (96 ERA+) with a 2.26 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 228 starts and 20 relief appearances split between the Mets, Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Seattle Mariners, and Miami Marlins.
| Season | WAR | IP | ERA | WHIP | FIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 1.4 | 150 | 4.02 | 1.39 | 4.09 |
| 2014 | 2.2 | 187 | 3.71 | 1.27 | 3.84 |
| 2015 | 0.4 | 43 | 3.98 | 1.35 | 4.30 |
| 2016 | 0.3 | 12 | 2.25 | 0.92 | 3.15 |
| 2017 | 1.6 | 179.2 | 4.16 | 1.33 | 4.67 |
Now, Vargas is poised to slide into a very talented Mets rotation that will also, barring injury, feature Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, and Zack Wheeler in 2018, with Steven Matz in the mix, as well, depending on his health.
Vargas, who turned 35 earlier this month, is the fourth notable free agent to sign with the Mets this winter, joining right fielder Jay Bruce, reliever Anthony Swarzak, and third baseman Todd Frazier.