Montreal placed RHP Tony Armas, Jr. on the disabled list on April 24th. An MRI revealed a minor strain of his right rotator cuff, so he shut down for a time before beginning a rehab program. Yesterday, he threw 30 pitches off a mound and reported no soreness. As the Expos are moving him along slowly and cautiously, I expect him to throw on the side twice more and then make a couple rehab starts before rejoining the team sometime in the last week of May.

RHP Claudio Vargas replaced Armas on the roster and in the rotation. After acquiring Vargas from Florida in last season's OF-L Cliff Floyd trade, the Expos placed Vargas with their AA franchise rather than their AAA affiliate, though he had been at AAA in the Marlins' system. While Vargas had struggled at AAA, I believe Montreal shouldn't have returned him to AA, where he had already proved himself.

This year, Vargas began the season at AAA Edmonton, but in recognition of the fact that they might need to call him up if they required a spot starter while in Puerto Rico, Montreal sent him to AA Harrisburg for a couple of starts, as the AA Eastern League would put him closer to the major league team than the AAA International League. However, he'd pitched quite well at AAA, compiling a 12:5 K:BB with 7 H and 1 HR allowed in 9.2 IP for a 2.79 ERA.

Vargas made his major league debut as the Expos' starter in their April 26th game against Houston. The 24-year-old issued walks to the first two major league batters he faced, OF-R Craig Biggio and IF-S Geoff Blum, before retiring 1B-R Jeff Bagwell on a pop out to center. RHP Scott Linebrink struck out looking to end the second, giving Vargas his first major league K. Vargas was not able to escape the game without giving up a homer; Bagwell took him deep to left in the third. RHP Dan Smith relieved Vargas to open the top of the seventh, after Vargas had compiled a 7:4 K:BB with 2 H and 1 HR allowed in 6 IP for a 1.50 ERA. Vargas should pitch effectively while Armas is on the disabled list. However barring another injury in the rotation, I believe Vargas likely will return to the minors once Armas rejoins the team, as working as a starter at AAA should be more useful to Vargas than relieving in the majors at this point.

Last week, the Expos dealt RHP Ben Washburn to San Francisco for 1B-R Joe Vitiello. We discussed Vitiello this off-season when he signed a minor league deal with the Giants. The 33-year-old isn't repeating his solid 2002 season, as prior to the trade he was only hitting .213 with a .289 OBP and .280 SLG on 16 H and 5 2B with an 8:9 BB:K in 75 AB at AAA Fresno in the Pacific Coast League. However, if he does rebound as the season continues, Vitiello should find more major league opportunities available in Montreal than in San Francisco.

Montreal drafted Washburn out of UC Riverside with their 14th round pick of the 2000 draft. He split the remainder of that season between Vermont in the Short-Season New York-Pennsylvania League and A Cape Fear in the South Atlantic League and then reported to A Clinton in the Midwest League for the 2001 season. He advanced to A+ Brevard County in the Florida State League in 2002, but also spent some time back at A Clinton. Returning to A+ Brevard County this year, Washburn compiled a 5:3 K:BB with 15 H and 0 HR allowed in 13 IP for a 2.77 ERA over 8 appearances before the trade. If he does well in the high minors, the 23-year-old could reach the majors as a reliever sometime in the next few years, but projecting his upside is currently difficult.

Atlanta placed RHP Darren Holmes on the disabled list yesterday with an inflamed nerve in his upper arm. As a result of the nerve problem, Holmes was experiencing numbness and tingling in his right arm. While he won't return until he's fully recovered, the Braves expect the 37-year-old will be able to rejoin the team when he's first eligible to leave the DL on May 17th. RHP Joe Dawley replaced Holmes on the roster. A strong performance at AAA earned Dawley another look in the majors. However, he'll have to pitch impressively in order to avoid heading back to the minors when Holmes comes off the DL.

OF-R Gary Sheffield spent May 3rd-5th on the bereavement list while attending his wife's grandmother's funeral. While Sheffield was away, OF-L Ryan Langerhans replaced him on the roster. Although he displayed a solid walk rate at AA in 2002, Langerhans struggled with his contact rate and Atlanta returned him to their AA Southern League affiliate at Greenville to start the 2003 season. Langerhans' batting average is up to .316 from last year's .251, and he'll probably receive a mid-season promotion to AAA, but his skills haven't really improved. Barring another brief need for an outfield sub, Langerhans should spend the rest of this season and next in the minors with the possibility of a couple of September call-ups.