In , Vázquez pitched 230 innings striking out a then career high 241 batters while walking 57. Regarded as one of the league's top pitchers he signaled to then GM Omar Minaya that he might not resign with the Expos, a team then threatened with contraction. Later when asked by the New York Times about his experience in Montreal that year he said it was tough "being over there having no owner. If you needed somebody the last couple years when we were in the hunt, especially last year, we couldn't get a player we needed." The article went on to note that for financial reasons the Expos not only couldn't "obtain players from other teams who might have helped the Expos stay in the wild-card race, but the Expos also weren't allowed to call up players from the minor leagues."