Going into next season, you could say a few spots on the New York Mets roster are pretty much finalized. First base and shortstop on the infield, two of three outfield spots, most of the rotation, and the back end of the bullpen are pretty much set in stone for the 2018 season.
However one position that is still in the undecided column for the Mets is second base. While the names of Gavin Cecchini and Matt Reynolds have been floated around as candidates of late, the solution could be right under the Mets’ nose: Wilmer Flores.
He Can Hit, And The Mets Need Hitters
The strongest aspect to Wilmer Flores‘ game is and has always been his bat. As of now the Mets have a fairly light-hitting team going into next season, and outside of third baseman Mike Moustakas there aren’t many free agent sluggers that make much sense.
In Flores, the Mets already have themselves a powerful bat under team control, and it would behoove them to finally find a permanent place for him in the line-up.
While Flores has had trouble hitting right-handed pitching in the past, 2017 has been a different story. So far this season, he has hit .275 (55-200) against RHP compared to .276 (27-98) against LHP.
Since May 8, Flores is batting .310 (52-168) with nine doubles, one triple, nine homers and 28 RBI versus right-handed pitching.
While you might have noticed that “low” batting average against lefties, interestingly enough, he has hit .196 against them at home but .346 in away games. Even more interesting is that against righties he’s hit .306 at home but .239 away.
Overall he has hit 15 home runs this season in only 323 plate appearances, right in line with his 16 homers in 335 plate appearances last season.
There has never been any question about whether or not he could hit lefties, but the uncertainty surrounding his ability to hit righties is what kept him out of the line-up on a regular basis. Now that he has shown he can hit righties and lefties with equal proficiency, there isn’t any reason to keep him on the bench.
Second Base Is His Best Position
We can all agree that Wilmer Flores is not a good shortstop or third baseman. In limited exposure to the position he has shown decent ability at first base, but with Dominic Smith done with the minor leagues there isn’t room for him there. What remains is second base, which just so happens to be Flores’ best defensive position.
Flores has played 667 career innings at second base, accumulating a 0.3 UZR and -7 DRS since 2013. Considering his being shuffled all over the infield for five seasons, that’s not bad at all. If he were to get more consistent playing time at the position then perhaps we can see some marked improvement.
The season in which he played the most innings at second base was 2015, and it’s no coincidence that he posted his best defensive statistics at the position. In 292.1 innings, he posted a 2.0 UZR and -1 DRS. Those numbers give credence to the theory that more innings at second base for Flores means he’ll get more comfortable and play better defense.
Consider The Alternatives
Among free agents, familiar face Neil Walker leads second basemen this offseason. The next-biggest name is 36-year-old Brandon Phillips followed by 33-year-old Jed Lowrie and 34-year-old Stephen Drew.
Eric Sogard, 31, is having a career year with the Brewers, posting a .283 batting average and .394 on-base percentage. However with just 184 at-bats as well as his never posting an OBP above .322 over a full season, the sample size is too small to chalk up this season as anything more than an outlier.
Flores is younger and cheaper than all those players, and would probably put up better offensive numbers than any of them.
I believe it’s very important for the Mets to stick Flores at second base and let him play every day for the rest of the 2017 season. Tell Wilmer that he is their second baseman from now on and let him grow comfortable at the position. With a little luck the Mets might find themselves with one of the top second basemen in the league.
He is young at 26 years-old, relatively cheap, and under team control through the 2019 season. He will not win a Gold Glove, no. But he is certainly capable of winning a NL Silver Slugger Award if he plays an entire season at the keystone for the Mets.
