Kansas City Royals Place Jason Vargas on Disabled List

The Kansas City Royals pitching woes do not appear as though they are going away any time soon. Just hours after Yordano Ventura left his start after three innings due to irritation in his ulnar nerve, it was discovered that Jason Vargas is once again suffering from the flexor strain that sidelined him earlier this season. While Ventura is expected to make his next start, the same cannot be said for Vargas, who was placed on the disabled list, as the Royals brought Brandon Finnegan back to take his spot on the roster.

With Vargas on the disabled list, this means that Joe Blanton will be taking his place in the rotation. Yes, Joe Blanton. The Royals starting pitching, which had been such a strength of the team last season and has struggled this year, is set to face perhaps their biggest challenge of the season.

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The timing of this injury is particularly unfortunate for Vargas. While his overall numbers, a 5-2 record with a 4.10 ERA and a 1.344 WHiP, may not seem stellar, Vargas has been solid since coming off the disabled list. In those three starts outings, Vargas has allowed four runs in 16 innings, striking out eleven while walking only one batter. This was the Jason Vargas of last season, and the pitcher the Royals needed to solidify their rotation.

Even though Vargas was able to avoid an extended stay on the disabled list last time, the recurrence of this injury is certainly troubling. Last time, the Kansas City Royals were fortunate in that Vargas was able to avoid Tommy John surgery, but will they be that fortunate again? Can simply resting the arm, which was not enough to avoid further injury last time, really allow him to return?

Given the struggles of the rotation, the Royals truly needed the Jason Vargas they saw after his stint on the disabled list. Yes, Edinson Volquez has been more than perhaps even the Royals have expected, Chris Young has been quite the free agent find and Jeremy Guthrie has righted the ship, but that is simply not enough pitching to compete. If Vargas is out for an extended period of time, or Yordano Ventura’s injury is worse than it is thought to be, it would certainly be time to press the panic button.

The Kansas City Royals starting rotation has been riddled with injuries and ineffectiveness for most of the season. Now, they have been dealt another setback as Jason Vargas will be heading back to the disabled list.

Next: Yordano Ventura Has Lost Two MPH Off His Fastball