Arizona Diamondbacks infielder Ildemaro Vargas had his hitting streak ended at 27 games after going 0-for-4 in Saturday’s 2-0 loss to the Chicago Cubs.
Vargas, 34, got a base hit in each of the D-Backs’ previous 24 games this season and three more in Arizona’s final three games last year. After hitting 4-for-4 — his best performance during the streak — he came into Saturday’s game with a .404 batting average.
With the hitless game, Vargas still leads MLB with an .388 batting average. His .412 on-base percentage ranks fifth in the National League and he leads the league with a .673 slugging percentage.
In his four plate appearances on Saturday, Vargas grounded out to third base in the first inning, flew out to center field in the fourth and grounded out to shortstop in the seventh against Cubs starter Shota Imanaga. In the ninth, Vargas hit a ground ball to shortstop facing reliever Ben Brown.
As a team, Arizona managed only four hits against Imanaga and Brown on Saturday.
Vargas’ streak ends as the second-longest to begin a season in MLB history. Ron LeFlore opened the 1976 campaign with hits in 30 consecutive games for the Detroit Tigers. But Vargas still had the longest hitting streak in baseball since Trea Turner’s 27 games from 2021-22.
In the Diamondbacks’ record book, Vargas’ 27-game streak ranks second behind Luis Gonzalez’ 30 games in 1999. His 24-game streak to open a season is tied with Tony Womack’s streak in 2000.
Additionally, Vargas recorded a hit in 20 consecutive road games which set a franchise record. The previous high mark was 18 games by Junior Spivey in 2002 and Stephen Drew in 2010.
However, Vargas’ 27-game streak is the longest by a Venezuelan player, something he noted with pride after Saturday’s game. Wilson Ramos had a 26-game streak with the New York Mets in 2019.
During his 10 major-league seasons, Vargas has had three separate stints with the Diamondbacks. He began his MLB career in 2017 before moving on in 2020., then returning to Arizona for the 2021 campaign. The infielder has also played for the Minnesota Twins, Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals.
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