In , as part of a young Expos rotation of "twentysomething", "tall", "power" pitchers Vázquez started the season as the team's number three pitcher but, after being sent back to the minor leagues would miss a month and a half of the major league season. He finished the year with 26 starts, including his first career shut out September 14 against the Dodgers, 154 innings and 131 strikeouts causing ESPN to write that he had "turn the corner ... dramatically." He was the losing pitcher when David Cone, of the New York Yankees, pitched a perfect game against the Expos on July 18, 1999.