Wilmer Flores, INF
Player Data: Age: 27, B/T: R/R, Free Agency: 2020
Basic Stats: 126 G, 429 PA, 11 HR, .267/.319/.417
Advanced Stats: 103 wRC+, .316 wOBA, .269 BABIP, .150 ISO, 0.5 fWAR, 0.5 bWAR
Grade: C-
2018 Review
Flores’s season this year was not too much unlike the years prior. He was a serviceable backup utility player and picked up some big hits off the bench, but has still never developed into a quality everyday player. He’s a below average fielder at every position, but was good enough at first, second, and third to play all three of those in 2018. Overall he was an average hitter, with a 103 wRC+, while providing mediocre fielding at multiple infield positions. It’s nothing exciting, but a player like Flores does have value, and his season really shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise considering that this is what he seems to have developed into.
His season could be considered a disappointment in a few ways, however. While for most of his career he has mashed lefties and struggled against righties, this year was the complete opposite. He batted only .237/.284/.326 against lefties, compared to his career line of .274/.318/.520 against lefties before this year. Most notable is his lack of power against lefties this year, with just an .089 ISO. His line versus right-handed pitching looks a lot more like himself, a line of .283/.338/.466 and a wRC+ of 121. He had the best season of his career against righties, but unfortunately he completely fell off a cliff against lefties. It’s hard to say whether it could just be a random sample size thing, but it’s frustrating for a talented player who has yet to really put it all together.
On the bright side, Flores produced a career-best 9.8% strikeout rate, beating out his previous career-best of 11.3% back in 2014, and lowering it by over 5% from last year. While he has always had a low walk rate, 2018 was the second highest walk rate of his career (6.8%) just barely behind only 2016 (6.9%). His .269 BABIP was right in line with his .269 career BABIP, and his average and on-base numbers were pretty much in line with what we’ve come to expect of Flores. The only major difference was his ISO dropping from .217 to .150, and this is mostly due to his sudden struggles against lefties. Overall, 2018 was a slight disappointment for Flores, but he still filled a role competently while performing above replacement level.
2019 Outlook
While Flores has become a fairly consistent utility guy, the Mets shouldn’t look to him to be a starter on next year’s team if they want to compete. They could potentially trade him to a team that has significant playing time available for him, but frankly I don’t really see him as having a ton of value in a deal.
The Mets are likely best off just keeping him in the same role he’s been in for the last few years, with the hope that they have a competitive enough team that they don’t have to resort to using him a starter too often. He can fill a role at first, second, or third base just fine, and provide adequate offense, but he isn’t a good long-term option at first base for a team trying to win. His offense does profile better at second base, but he’s pretty much blocked by Jeff McNeil in terms of an everyday job there. In 2019, Flores should serve perfectly well as a solid bench player.
