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The New York Mets and free agent pitcher Jason Vargas have agreed to a two year, $16 million deal, according to reports on the Tweetbox. Vargas, 35, hit free agency this offseason after finishing up a 4 year, $32 million deal he signed with the Kansas City Royals prior to the 2014 season.
Vargas was good for the Royals when he was healthy, putting up a 108 ERA+ in his four years with the Royals, but he missed most of the 2015 and 2016 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2015. Vargas in 2017 had a 4.16 ERA, good for a 3.8 bWAR, but he had a 4.67 FIP, leading to a much lower fWAR of 1.6.
Yesterday morning, I mentioned that there were three pitchers out there who I thought the Rangers would have interest in signing to short-term deals — Jaime Garcia, Andrew Cashner, and Jason Vargas. Now, about 24 hours later, all three have agreed to deals with other teams, all for around $8 million per year.