Claudio Vargas Almonte (born June 19, 1978) is a Dominican former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

. He has previously played for the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

, Arizona Diamondbacks,

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

, and

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

. He has both started games and also pitched in both middle and long relief during his career. His nickname among Brewers fans was the "Magic Man" because of his ability to get himself into bases loaded situations and escape with little or no damage.

Minor league career

Vargas was signed as an undrafted

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

by the Florida Marlins in 1995 at age 16 and made his professional debut with the Marlins Dominican Summer League team, where he played in 1996 and 1997. In 1998 he pitched for the rookie league Gulf Coast Marlins and the Class-A Brevard County Manatees. He continued to pitch in the Marlins system through 2001 with the

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are an independent professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their ho ...

Portland Sea Dogs The Portland Sea Dogs are a Minor League Baseball team based in Portland, Maine, playing in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League. Established in 1994, the Sea Dogs are the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Boston Red ...

and

Calgary Cannons The Calgary Cannons were a minor league baseball team located in Calgary, Alberta, for 18 seasons, from 1985 until 2002. They were a member of the AAA Pacific Coast League (PCL) and played at Foothills Stadium. The Cannons displaced the Calgary ...

. On July 11, 2002, he was traded by the Marlins (along with Wilton Guerrero,

Cliff Floyd Cornelius Clifford Floyd Jr. (born December 5, 1972) is a former Major League Baseball left fielder who played for 17 seasons, most notably for the Montreal Expos, Florida Marlins and New York Mets. He is currently a baseball analyst who co-hosts ...

and cash) to the

for Donald Levinski,

Justin Wayne Justin Morgan Wayne (born April 16, 1979) is an American former professional baseball pitcher, who played for the Florida Marlins of Major League Baseball for three seasons. High school Wayne is from Honolulu, Hawaii, and an alumnus of Punahou ...

, Carl Pavano,

Mike Mordecai Michael Howard Mordecai (born December 13, 1967) is an American former professional baseball infielder, who played for the Atlanta Braves, Montreal Expos, and Florida Marlins of Major League Baseball (MLB). Since 2010, he has worked in the Toron ...

and Graeme Lloyd. In the Expos minor league system he pitched for the Harrisburg Senators and Edmonton Trappers.

Major league career

Vargas made his Major League debut on April 26, 2003, against the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

and recorded his first victory in a 6–3 win over the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

. He made 23 appearances (20 starts) for the Expos in 2003, with a 6–8 record and 4.34 ERA. In 2004, he appeared in 45 games (only 14 starts) and went 5–5 with a 5.25 ERA. He signed as a free agent with the

before the 2005 season but the Nationals designated him for assignment after he went 0–3 with a 17.55 ERA at the start of the season. He was claimed off waivers by the Arizona Diamondbacks on June 3 and went 9–6 with a 4.81 ERA in 21 games (19 starts) for the Diamondbacks the rest of the season. He remained with the team for the 2006 season and turned in a solid season, 12–10, 4.83 ERA in 30 starts. In November 2006, Vargas was traded to the

along with pitcher

Greg Aquino Gregori Emilio Aquino Valera (; ; born January 11, 1978) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He previously played for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers, Baltimore Orioles, and Cleveland Indians. Career Arizona Diamondbacks Aqui ...

and catcher Johnny Estrada, for

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Dave Krynzel David Benjamin Krynzel (born November 7, 1981) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. He made his major league debut on September 1, . Krynzel was drafted in the 1st round (11th overall) of the 2000 Major League Baseball Draft and spent se ...

, and pitchers

Dana Eveland Dana James Eveland (born October 29, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Oakland Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays, Pittsburgh Pirates, L ...

and Doug Davis. In March 2008, Vargas was released by the Brewers after struggling in 2007 with an 11–6 record and 5.09 ERA in 23 starts (29 total appearances). In April, he was signed to a minor league deal with the

. In his Mets debut on May 14, 2008, he received a standing ovation from the Shea Stadium crowd, giving up only 2 earned runs and 3

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

, despite the loss to the Washington Nationals. Vargas was designated for assignment in June and spent the rest of the season in the minors. In January 2009, Vargas signed a 1-year deal with the

. He was expected to compete for a spot in the starting rotation during

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

, however, he suffered an arm injury and began the season on the 60-day

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. After spending the first three months of the season on the DL, he was activated by the Dodgers on July 3. Vargas pitched in middle relief for the Dodgers, until he was traded on July 31 to the

for Minor League catcher

Vinny Rottino Vincent Antonio Rottino (born April 7, 1980) is an American former professional baseball utility player. He has played positions including catcher, first base, third base, and the outfield. He graduated from St. Catherine's High School in Racine ...

. Vargas pitched in 28 games for the Brewers in 2009, and was 1–0 with a 1.78 ERA. He re-signed with the Brewers for the 2010 season, appearing in 17 games with a 7.32 ERA. On May 29, 2010, Vargas was designated for assignment and was released on June 4. On June 16 he re-signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers and was assigned to the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes. He was released on August 16. He announced his retirement on June 13, 2011, after he had signed a minor league contract with the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

in the off-season. He had an 11.08 ERA in 26 innings with the Triple-A

Colorado Springs Sky Sox The Colorado Springs Sky Sox were a Minor League Baseball team in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and was the Triple-A affiliate of the major league Milwaukee Brewers (2015–2018), Colorado Rockie ...

that season. Despite his retirement, Vargas pitched as the closer for the Mexican League's Vaqueros Laguna in 2012. Furthermore, the Milwaukee Brewers signed him to a minor league contract in order to fill out the starting rotation at Triple-A

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. He signed a minor league contract, containing a spring training invitation, with the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

in December 2012. He started the 2013 season on the roster of the Triple-A

Buffalo Bisons The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...

. He was released on July 22 after posting a 5–7 record and an ERA of 5.86 with the Bisons. He returned to the Laguna in the Mexican League for the 2014 season. Making 11 starts across 62 innings going 3-3 with a 4.21 ERA and 40 strikeouts.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vargas, Claudio 1978 births Living people Águilas Cibaeñas players Albuquerque Isotopes players Arizona Diamondbacks players Baseball players at the 2015 Pan American Games Brevard County Manatees players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Calgary Cannons players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Canada Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Edmonton Trappers players Gulf Coast Marlins players Harrisburg Senators players Inland Empire 66ers players Kane County Cougars players Los Angeles Dodgers players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic Mexican League baseball pitchers Milwaukee Brewers players Montreal Expos players Nashville Sounds players New Orleans Zephyrs players New York Mets players People from Santa Cruz de Mao Portland Sea Dogs players St. Lucie Mets players Vaqueros Laguna players Washington Nationals players Pan American Games competitors for the Dominican Republic