Roberto Vargas

Roberto Enrique Vargas Velez

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 11", Weight 170 lb.

• Debut 1948
• National League Debut April 17, 1955
• Final Game September 25, 1955
• Born May 29, 1929 in Santurce, P.R.
• Died May 27, 2014 in Caguas, P.R.

BR page

Biographical Information

Roberto Vargas was one of the first ten Puerto Ricans to debut in the National League or American League, making his first appearance on the same day as fellow Puerto Rican Roberto Clemente, at the start of the 1955 season. He spent only that season in the NL, pitching for the Milwaukee Braves.

Vargas had played for the Chicago American Giants in the Negro Leagues after being spotted by Quincy Trouppe in Puerto Rico. He was an all-star in 1948.

Vargas was one of several former major leaguers at the Puerto Rican Sports Museum in 2007 when Hank Aaron showed up to chat and to reminisce about his winter in Puerto Rico in 1953.

One source (the book Baseball's Other All-Stars) says that Vargas played in the Puerto Rico winter leagues from 1947-1960. He was part of the Cangrejeros de Santurce that won the 1953 Caribbean Series and was inducted into the Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame in 2020.

Vargas often posted low ERA's while in the minors, but had an 8.76 ERA in 25 games during his one year in the majors. Three of the runs were produced via a three-run home run by Duke Snider of the Brooklyn Dodgers on June 1st.