Diamondbacks Infielder Is Hitting .404 and MLB Fans Need to Know

There have been a lot of shocking stories across Major League Baseball in 2026 and Ildemaro Vargas is the most surprising at this point.

That is an understatement. The 34-year-old is having the best season of his career to this point, to say the least. The noise is starting to build. He's a career .257 hitter in 10 seasons, but what he has been able to do in 2026 has been incredible and completely out of the ordinary.

To put it into perspective, Vargas went 4-for-4 on Friday afternoon and extended his active hitting streak to 27 games. USA Today's Bob Nightengale pointed out that this is the longest hitting streak to begin a season for Arizona.

"Arizona Diamondbacks IF Ildemaro Vargas stretches his hitting streak to 27 consecutive games dating back to last year, and 24 this season," Nightengale wrote. "It's the longest hitting streak to begin a season in franchise history, and the 2nd-longest overall in D-backs history."

The Diamondbacks Infielder Is Having A Shocking Season

Apr 29, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Ildemaro Vargas (6) celebrates in the dugout after Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Nolan Arenado’s (28) (not pictured) home run against the Milwaukee Brewers in the fifth inning at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | Michael McLoone-Imagn Images

That's not even close to all. Vargas is now hitting .404 on the season. This isn't some small sample size either. Vargas has played in 24 games for the Diamondbacks and has 94 at-bats under his belt and a .404 batting average on May 1. That's obviously the highest mark in the league by far. In 2025, he played in just 38 total games and had 115 at-bats. He already has tied his career-high with six homers as well.

Now, you're always going to see guys have hot streaks. You'll see stretches of guys hitting over .400 for a few weeks, but carrying a batting average like that through the first month of a season is impressive.

Now, it's a been a long time since someone went an entire season batting over .400. The last player to do so was Ted Williams with the Boston Red Sox back in 1941 when he hit .406.

We're not on .400 watch yet. It's May, but this is his performance early on this season is something that fans should know about. 94 at-bats is a solid sample size. No one can really be on .400 watch until at least the summer, but we're seeing one of the most surprising breakouts you're going to see. Again, this is a 34-year-old we're talking about here. He has never even played in 100 games in a season. He's been a depth piece. Now, he's the hottest hitter in baseball.

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