Vargas was released by the Tigers on Wednesday, Andersen Pickard of MLBDailyDish.com reports.
Vargas signed a minor-league deal with the Tigers in January, but he was released by the team Wednesday after being left off the 60-man roster. The 29-year-old was a non-roster invitee during spring training, but he went 0-for-7 with four strikeouts. Whether Vargas will be able to land with another team remains to be seen.
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Tigers' Kennys Vargas: Latches on with Detroit
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Vargas signed a minor-league contract with the Tigers on Monday, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.
Vargas has most recently appeared in the Puerto Rican Winter League with Mayaguez, slashing .272/.434/.505 with five homers and 25 RBI in 31 games. His last big-league appearance dates back to 2017 with Minnesota, where he finished with a .253 average, 11 long balls and 41 RBI across 78 contests. Vargas figures to begin the year with Triple-A Toledo.
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Kennys Vargas: Heads overseas
Rotowire
Vargas agreed to a contract Tuesday with the Chiba Lotte Marines of the Japanese Pacific League, Seth Stohs of TwinsDaily.com reports.
After being outrighted off the Twins' 40-man roster coming out of spring training, Vargas spent the entire 2018 campaign at Triple-A Rochester, delivering a .240/.326/.425 slash line across 644 plate appearances. With that production unlikely to earn Vargas much more than a minor-league deal this winter, the 28-year-old elected to take his talents overseas for the 2019 season. Contact issues have limited the impact of Vargas' considerable pop in the majors and high minors, but he could emerge as a top slugger in Japan while teeing off against lower-caliber pitching.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Clears waivers, outrighted to Triple-A
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Vargas was outrighted to Triple-A Rochester on Tuesday, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
After bouncing back and forth between the Reds and Twins, Vargas will indeed open the season back at Rochester after passing through waivers untouched. He will serve as organizational depth. While the 27-year-old possesses some serious pop, he's failed to get things going in brief major-league stints over the previous four seasons, hitting a combined .252/.311/.437 with 35 homers in 236 games.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Claimed off waivers by Twins
Rotowire
Vargas was claimed off waivers by the Twins on Saturday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.
Vargas's merry-go-round continues with the first baseman heading back to the Twins. The first baseman was designated for assignment by the team last weekend and then scooped up by the Reds on Thursday. It seems unlikely that he will be able to find much playing time with Joe Mauer and Logan Morrison ahead of him on the depth chart, but expect Vargas to secure a reserve role off the bench as a pinch hitter for the club's Opening Day roster.
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Reds' Kennys Vargas: Heads to Cincinnati
Rotowire
Vargas was claimed off waivers by the Reds on Thursday.
Vargas' power potential is undeniable, but his struggles in the majors ultimately forced the Twins to cast him off the 40-man roster earlier in the month. He'll now head to Cincinnati, where he'll likely be relegated to being a bench bat given the presence of star first baseman Joey Votto.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Sent off 40-man roster
Rotowire
Vargas was designated for assignment Friday.
The signing of Logan Morrison already made Vargas a roster redundancy, so when the Twins needed a 40-man roster spot for Jake Cave, Vargas was a relatively easy choice. Assuming the team can't find a trade partner, the switch-hitting slugger will now either be released or clear waivers and spend his time with Triple-A Rochester after batting .252 with 35 homers in the majors over the past four years.
Twins' Kennys Vargas: Tougher road to win roster spot
Rotowire
Vargas will have a tougher time making the Minnesota 25-man roster after the Twins signed Logan Morrison, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. Vargas is 1-for-2 this spring and says he has improved vision after being fitted for a contact lens in his left eye. "I was seeing the ball really good," he said after getting a hit Saturday. "I've never seen it that clear."
Vargas looked likely to make the 25-man roster as a reserve and part-time DH before the Twins signed Morrison. Following the signing, Vargas looks like a candidate to be traded or sent to the minors. His limited ability to play in the field hurts his chances to win a spot on the bench.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Looking to earn final bench spot
Rotowire
Vargas will compete for the Twins' final bench spot during spring training, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
Vargas is likely frontrunner given he's out of minor-league options, but he'll still need to impress the Twins' brass during camp to assure himself a spot on the Opening Day roster as a backup option at first baseman and designated hitter. In 78 games with the big club last season, the 27-year-old hit just .253/.314/.444 with 11 homers. He's flashed some serious power potential in the past -- launching the third longest homer in the majors last season -- but that comes with a lowly 68 percent contact rate. Even if he breaks camp with the Twins, it would likely take an injury or two for him to see extended playing time.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Launches two-run bomb in loss
Rotowire
Vargas went 2-for-2 with a double, a two-run home run and two walks during Sunday's loss to Kansas City.
Vargas has been playing sparingly, and while Sunday's blast could earn him a few more at-bats moving forward, he's not in the lineup enough to move the needle in most fantasy settings. His .249/.311/.438 slash line shouldn't instill much confidence, either.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Takes seat again Sunday
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Vargas is out of the lineup Sunday against the Royals, Shane Jackson of MLB.com reports.
Vargas will be on the bench for the second straight contest, with Twins manager Paul Molitor opting to keep much of his lineup intact from Saturday after Minnesota rolled to a 17-0 victory. It still appears that Vargas will handle most of the designated hitter duties until either Miguel Sano (shin) or Robbie Grossman (thumb) returns from the disabled list, as the 27-year-old has contributed a respectable .350 on-base percentage since rejoining the big club Aug. 21.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Out of Saturday's lineup
Rotowire
Vargas is out of Saturday's lineup against the Royals, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
He has been the primary DH since getting recalled, hitting .235/.333/.353 with one home run and 10 strikeouts in 34 at-bats over that span. Mitch Garver gets the start at DH, hitting sixth, against lefty Onelki Garcia.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Draws third straight start
Rotowire
Vargas will serve as the Twins' designated hitter and bat seventh Tuesday against the White Sox.
Injuries to Robbie Grossman (thumb) and Miguel Sano (shin) have left Vargas the top option on the depth chart at DH. Vargas will draw his third consecutive start Tuesday after going 3-for-9 with two RBI over the past two contests.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Goes yard Tuesday
Rotowire
Vargas went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 4-1 win over the White Sox.
As has been his habit this season, Vargas flashed his power quickly after his latest promotion from Triple-A Rochester. While his nine homers and 31 RBI in 54 big-league games are solid, his .245 batting average and .736 OPS point to why he hasn't been able to hang onto a regular spot in the Twins' lineup. With Miguel Sano (shin) out for another week or so, however, expect Vargas to see plenty of at-bats through the rest of August as the team looks to replace their young slugger's thump.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Recalled from Triple-A
Rotowire
Vargas was recalled from Triple-A Rochester on Monday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.
Vargas will assume the active roster spot of Miguel Sano (shin), who landed on the 10-day disabled list Sunday. The 27-year-old Vargas has reached base at just a .289 clip over 190 plate appearances with the big club this season, but he's often provided an impact when he's been able to make contact, as evidenced by the eight home runs and nine doubles on his ledger. Vargas is expected to pick up semi-regular at-bats at designated hitter or first base while Sano remains sidelined.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Sent back to minors
Rotowire
Vargas was optioned to Triple-A Rochester following Wednesday's game against the Brewers, LaVelle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Vargas was only with the big club for one game before being sent back to Rochester to clear room for Thursday's starter, Dietrich Enns. The 27-year-old owns a .244/.291/.432 slash line with eight homers in 176 at-bats for the Twins this season. He'll likely be back in the majors again sometime before the season ends.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Brought up by Twins
Rotowire
Vargas was recalled by the Twins on Wednesday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.
He takes the roster spot of Adalberto Mejia, who was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a left arm strain Tuesday. Vargas has had hot stretches in the big leagues this season, but wasn't able to carve out an everyday role en route to hitting .244/.291/.432 before being sent down to Triple-A Rochester. The slugger hasn't fared much better in the minors, batting .221 with eight home runs over 42 games, but could provide a power threat at the designated hitter spot, as the Twins rank 23rd in home runs this year.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Optioned to Triple-A
Rotowire
Vargas was optioned to Triple-A Rochester on Monday, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
The Twins will send Vargas to the minor leagues in order to open up a 25-man roster spot for Tuesday's scheduled starter, Bartolo Colon. Vargas currently holds a .244 average with eight home runs and 30 RBI in 176 at-bats this season. He'll likely rejoin the big-league club in the not-so-distant future.
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Twins' Kennys Vargas: Goes deep in loss
Rotowire
Vargas went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's loss to the Astros.
Vargas opened the scoring in the second inning with his eighth long ball of the season, but Houston promptly tied the game in the bottom of the frame and ended up pulling away for good by the end of the fourth. The first baseman's .247/.290/.437 line is just about in line with his career output of .250/.305/.431.
