MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo is continues to roll out his Top 10 prospects at each position as he moves onto third basemen.
1. Nolan Arenado, Rockies: Sometimes a player gets knocked unfairly because of his surroundings. It’s not Arenado’s fault he played in the hitting-friendly California League and then the equally cozy Arizona Fall League in 2011. What he does deserve credit for is raking in both places. Arenado led the Minors in RBIs with 122. He struck out just 53 times all season. Then Arenado went on and won the AFL MVP Award, finishing among the leaders in a host of offensive categories. He should hit for average, and even if he doesn’t hit a ton of homers, he’ll be a run producer. There once was concern about Arenado’s defense at third, but he’s worked to improve and those worries are now gone. He’ll move up to Double-A now, and it might not be too long before he’s spotted in Coors Field.
As you can see Wilmer Flores made the list and here is what Mayo had to say about him:
9. Wilmer Flores, Mets: It’s easy to look at Flores’ numbers and feel like he’s been disappointing, especially for a highly-touted prospect. But considering he’s still just 20 years old, and will be for most of 2012, and that he’s reached the Class A Advanced level, it might soften those criticisms. Flores still has things to learn, particularly in the plate discipline department, but he rarely strikes out and there’s power to tap into. A shortstop for the first few years of his career, the move to third most predicted started in Venezuela this winter. This is a big year for Flores, who needs to start turning potential into performance, perhaps while playing in Double-A.
Flores is the first Met prospect to appear in the 2012 Top Positional Prospect series. So far they have covered RHP, LHP, C, 3B and SS.
I know a lot of fans are down on Wilmer Flores, but I have a hunch he’s going to impress all the doubters at St. Lucie this season. The best is yet to come for Flores.
