The New York Mets signed Jason Vargas in 2018 to add veteran depth to a strong young rotation. He was expected to “eat innings” and occupy the back of the rotation while the others suffered the usual pitching injuries.
Instead, as everyone knows, Vargas himself got hurt before the season even started and came back to pitch poorly for most of the season. Not only was his ERA an unsightly 5.77, but just as alarming was his average of 4.6 innings per start.
As an innings eater, he was pushing away from the table before he started dessert.