When you look at the Met lineup, two things come to the mind-lots of power potential and it can look awfully lefty. As the season progresses, teams will start to try to tackle that by making the Mets face more lefties than a conservative political candidate. I firmly believe Wilmer Flores could liberate the Mets from that oppression—no pun intended.
This is a man who owns southpaws and he also gives the team versatility in that he could play 3 infield positions-first, second, or third—helping Terry Collins give everyday players their needed rest time during a long baseball season. Last night, Wilmer Flores put the game away giving his team a 4-1 lead with a two-run homer off Jaime Garcia illustrating his domination of left handed pitching. Terry Collins gives all the credit to Flores who gets sporadic playing time but still stays sharp whenever the Met manager calls upon him.
I had a chance to talk to Wilmer Flores about this after the game and he admitted he wants to play more but he has to accept this role and embrace it. Part of that process is preparing himself to be ready when the time presents itself. I have covered Flores for quite a few years and his maturity in accepting a plethora of different roles throughout his Met tenure should not be overlooked. All winning teams need players like this and it commands a high level of respect throughout the Met clubhouse.
I have always felt Wilmer Flores is an underrated Met because offensive prowess with limited at-bats generally takes years to develop but he brings that skill to the table every day in a way very few players of his age can. Terry Collins understands that value and loves having Wilmer Flores to use when his team needs a big hit off a southpaw. Quite frankly, he does it as well as anyone in the game.