Hey, Nineteen: Jason Vargas

[Edgy MD]

https://cdn.newsday.com/polopoly_fs/1.29772177.1555223521!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_768/image.jpg>



Hello, I'm Jason Vargas. And in the long tradition of Mets dating back to Rod Gaspar and plowing on through to a little somebody name ... Jeff McNeil ... I'm a Long Beach State Dirtbag.



I was developed and picked by the Marlins. But the Mets coveted me and Omar Minaya — who usually preferred a hot, young, live arm to a guy who has demonstrated a successful approach — went against his own values and traded hot young arms Matt Lindstrom and Henry Owens for me and a guy named Adam Bostick, who, um, wasn't particularly good.



So the Mets send off two arms for two pitchers. Omar totally went against his own instincts, and it worked! Lindstrom had a decent career as an itinerant reliever, and Owens blew out his shoulder. I'm not great, but I did a lot better than either of those guys!



But Minaya was Minaya, so I only got two starts with the Mets before they unloaded me in the massive — and massively incoherent — J.J. Putz trade. Omar didn't know what he had, and so he won that first trade, but it only became clear after he got an enormous swirly on the second.



So, 15.7 WAR later, I came back to the Mets, and 10 minutes later, so did Omar Minaya. Weird, right?



And like my first tenure with the Mets, I stunk. I stunk like a messy diaper left out the sun on the top of a waste receptacle. And put a rotten fermented banana on top of that. Throw some used coffee grounds in there too.



But back for more I have come. And though I've mostly pitched better of late — and since I don't know how to tell you this, but here goes — I have a higher overall ERA than last year.



I'm on the DL ... again. When I come back, there is reason to hopeful, but there is also reason to be scared. And there is totally a good reason to be psyched if your name is Drew Gagnon.



So, this is going to play out any number of ways going forward. Perhaps you know. If you do, could you please step forward, state your name and your affiliation, and tell us what you see.

[MFS62]

Hopefully, he'll be pitching for some independent league team by the end of the year.

Realistically, he will be starting for the Mets, every fifth day (unless the weather permits Mickey to mercifully skip his turn), averaging 4.1 innings, giving up 3 or 4 earned runs, and wearing out the bullpen.



Later

[Frayed Knot]

Or maybe you could hope that he'd be pitching to a sub-4.00 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP like he did the second half of last year.

Seems like that would be much better than is hoping for failure and release, especially with no better options in mind, but, hey, that's just me.

[G-Fafif]

Vargy's shutout of the Giants was the 21st nine-inning complete victory thrown by a Met at Citi Field and 16th such shutout.

[MFS62]

Guess my glass half empty view isn't working out too well in these prediction threads.

Later

[G-Fafif]

Trade value must be cresting. Sell high to one of those teams that is lightly covered.

[Centerfield]

Agreed! But let's make sure to unload all of the salary to make sure we don't get any player of use in return.

[seawolf17]

=Centerfield post_id=14343 time=1561643646 user_id=65]
Agreed! But let's make sure to unload all of the salary to make sure we don't get any player of use in return.

[Edgy MD]

Wally Matthews https://www.yahoo.com/sports/mets-official-on-jason-vargas-were-all-angry-with-him-212158570.htmllives.



Veteran columnist takes on the enviable assignment of contrasting Seaver and Vargas and still kind of muffs it several times.



Does his diligence hitting his (anymous) sources, but the facts he brings to bear don't really all support what he's trying to say.

[G-Fafif]

That's some classic columnizing there. Tom Seaver didn't punch Dick Young (or Don Grant), therefore Jason Vargas is the worst.



Actually, I'm down with the conclusion, but still.

[Edgy MD]

Yeah. I mean, I'm TRYING to let him score and he keeps clanking it. Vargas has a 3.66 ERA so he should shut the fuck up.



#logic