KANSAS CITY, Mo. — When free agency begins after the 2017 season, the Kansas City Royals have several key players who could be in line for big pay raises. Eric Hosmer, Lorenzo Cain, Mike Moustakas and Alcides Escobar are among those.
So is Jason Vargas. Where would the Royals be without him? The Royals left-hander is in the final year of a four-year, $32 million contract, and he is off to the best start of his career. In his first three starts of the season, Vargas is 3-0 with a 0.44 ERA. In his last start Wednesday against the San Francisco Giants, Vargas threw seven shutout innings and struck out nine and didn’t walk a batter.