Wilmer Flores Player Card | Baseball Prospectus

Wilmer Flores

Age: 33

Birth Date: 1991 Aug 06

Birthplace: Valencia, Venezuela

Height: 6' 3"

Weight: 225 lb.

Current Contract: $3,500,000

B/T: Right/Right

Season	G Games	PA Plate Appearances	WARP Wins Above Replacement Player	DRC+ Deserved Runs Created plus - Measures batter contributions, not just results. 100 is average. Higher is better, lower is worse.	SD± DRC+ Standard Deviation - Our measure of uncertainty surrounding a player’s DRC+	DRAA Deserved Runs Above Average - DRC+ converted to runs	BRR Base Running Runs - Measures the number of runs contributed by a player's advancement on the bases -- opportunity and park adjusted	DRP Deserved Runs Prevented - Total summary of all fielding contributions
Career	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Current Season	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

5/14/2024

What They’re Saying: Wilmer Flores Edition

Howard Megdal

2/08/2024

Deep League Report 2024: NL Third Basemen

Carlos Marcano

1/22/2024

Deep League Report 2024: NL First Basemen

Carlos Marcano

At-a-glance reports will be available on our new player cards shortly.

2020-02-12 : San Francisco Giants signed free agent 2B Wilmer Flores.
2019-10-31 : 2B Wilmer Flores elected free agency.
2019-01-21 : Arizona Diamondbacks signed free agent 1B Wilmer Flores.
2018-11-30 : 1B Wilmer Flores elected free agency.
2014-07-24 : New York Mets recalled SS Wilmer Flores from Las Vegas 51s.
2014-05-09 : New York Mets recalled Wilmer Flores from Las Vegas 51s.
2014-04-02 : New York Mets recalled Wilmer Flores from Las Vegas 51s.
2013-08-06 : New York Mets recalled Wilmer Flores from Las Vegas 51s.
2013-08-06 : New York Mets selected the contract of Wilmer Flores from Las Vegas 51s.
2012-10-04 : New York Mets recalled Wilmer Flores from Binghamton Mets.
2011-11-18 : New York Mets selected the contract of Wilmer Flores from St. Lucie Mets.
2011-03-10 : SS Wilmer Flores assigned to New York Mets.
2010-03-05 : SS Wilmer Flores assigned to New York Mets.

Date On When the player was placed on IL or injured	Date Off When the player was activated from IL or returned	Transaction Action taken by team	Days Total days missed by player	Games Approximate team games missed by player	Side The side of the body where the injury occurred	Body Part The part of the body where the injury occured	Injury A description of the injury
2024-07-24	2024-10-01	60 day	69	-	right	knee	Patellar tendinitis
2024-06-28	2024-07-09	10 day	11	-	right	knee	Patellar tendinitis
2023-06-17	2023-06-27	10 day	10	-	left	foot	foot contusion
2022-07-14	-	DTD	-	-	right	lower leg	calf injury
2022-05-10	2022-05-13	DTD	3	-	none	back	tightness in lower back
2021-09-02	2021-09-12	10 day	10	-	left	upper leg	hamstring strain
2021-05-19	2021-05-29	10 day	10	-	right	upper leg	hamstring strain
2019-05-20	2019-07-18	10-DL	59	-	Right	Foot	0
2018-09-19	2018-10-01	DTD	12	-	Bilateral	Knee	Early-onset arthritis
2018-08-01	2018-08-01	DTD	0	-	No Side	Dehydration	Other
2018-05-28	2018-06-15	10-DL	18	-	Not Known	Lumbar Spine	Stenosis
2017-09-03	2017-10-02	DTD	29	-	No Side	Nose	Fracture
2017-08-16	2017-08-18	DTD	2	-	Left	Ribcage	Soreness
2017-04-20	2017-05-03	10-DL	13	-	Right	Knee	Joint
2016-09-11	2016-10-06	DTD	25	-	Right	Wrist	Contusion
2016-06-17	2016-06-17	DTD	0	-	Left	Hand	Contusion
2016-05-11	2016-05-29	15-DL	18	-	Left	Hamstring	Strain
2016-03-02	2016-03-03	Camp	1	-	No Side	Viral Infection	Other
2015-12-05	2016-01-12	Winter	38	-	Left	Ankle	Fracture
2015-11-27	2015-12-02	Winter	5	-	Left	Ankle	Fracture
2015-10-01	2015-10-10	DTD	9	-	No Side	Low Back	Soreness
2015-10-01	2015-10-10	DTD	9	-	No Side	Viral Infection	Strep Throat
2015-03-23	2015-03-26	Camp	3	-	Not Known	Foot	Contusion
2014-05-11	2014-05-17	DTD	6	-	No Side	Viral Infection	Other
2013-09-07	2013-09-09	DTD	2	-	Right	Ankle	Soreness
2013-08-31	2013-09-02	DTD	2	-	Right	Ankle	Soreness
2013-08-29	2013-08-30	DTD	1	-	Right	Ankle	Soreness
2013-08-13	2013-08-14	DTD	1	-	Right	Ankle	Sprain
2013-07-14	2013-07-23	Minors	9	-	Not Known	Ankle	Sprain
2012-02-28	2012-03-06	Camp	7	-	Right	Shoulder	Inflammation
2010-10-15	2010-10-15	Winter	0	-	Left	Hamstring	Strain

3 years/$16.5M (2023-25). Signed extension with San Francisco 9/13/22. 23:$6.5M, 24:$6.5M, 25:$3.5M player option (no buyout). Conditional club option for 2025: if Flores declines his player option, Giants may exercise $8.5M club option for 2025.
2 years/$6.25M (2020-21), plus 2022 option. Signed by San Francisco as a free agent 2/12/20. 20:$3M, 21:$3M, 22:$3.5M club option ($250,000 buyout). San Francisco exercised 2022 option 11/7/21.
1 year/$4.25M (2019), plus 2020 club option. Signed by Arizona as a free agent 1/16/19. 19:$3.75M, 20:$6M club option ($0.5M buyout). Performance bonuses: $25,000 for 400 plate appearances. $50,000 each for 450, 500, 550 PAs. $75,000 for 600 PAs. Arizona declined 2020 option 10/31/19.
1 year/$3.4M (2018). Re-signed by NY Mets 1/12/18 (avoided arbitration). Non-tendered by NY Mets 11/30/18.
1 year/$2.2M (2017). Won arbitration with NY Mets 2/4/17 ($2.2M-$1.8M).
1 year/$526,014 (2016). Re-signed by NY Mets 3/4/16.
1 year/$513,543 (2015). Re-signed by NY Mets 3/5/15.
1 year (2014). Re-signed by NY Mets 3/3/14.
1 year (2013). Re-signed by NY Mets 3/3/13.
1 year (2012). Contract purchased by NY Mets 11/18/11. Re-signed by NY Mets 3/12.

Year Contract Year	Age Seasonal Age	Team Signing Team	Salary Salary or other detail	Service Time Accured service time
2013	21	NYN	0	0.055
2014	22	NYN	0	1.002
2015	23	NYN	$513,543	2.003
2016	24	NYN	$526,014	3.003
2017	25	NYN	$2,200,000	4.003
2018	26	NYN	$3,400,000	5.003
2019	27	ARI	$3,750,000	6.003
2020	28	SFN	$3,000,000	7.003
2021	29	SFN	$3,000,000	-
2022	30	SFN	$3,500,000	-
2023	31	SFN	$6,500,000	-
2024	32	SFN	$6,500,000	-
2025	33	SFN	$3,500,000	-
Total			$36,389,557	7.003

Year	Comments	Buy now
2024	With the Giants offense completely dead in the second half, it was easy for outside observers to assume widespread failure. Let's clear up that misconception right now: From June 1 through September 8, Flores hit .323/.398/.610, making him one of six players with an OPS surpassing 1.000 in that span (over at least 250 plate appearances). The other five were Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Corey Seager, Matt Olson and Ronald Acuña Jr. Will this carry over into Flores' age-32 season? He only needed the benefit of a .306 BABIP in that stretch, so it's not exactly unthinkable.	Buy it now
2023	Every family has that one pot, the one that’s been in the family for so long you’re not exactly sure which relative it belonged to, only that it predates your existence on this planet and will live on long after you have shuffled off this mortal coil. If that pot was a baseball player, it would be Flores: around forever with the attendant dings of years of service; reliable if unspectacular, both at the plate and in the field. Flores maintained the offensive improvements he made in 2021—erasing handedness splits, walking more—and also hit a career-high 19 homers, second-most on the team. The family pot isn't the nicest. It’s scuffed in places and made out of materials that are almost certainly carcinogenic, by a company that no longer exists if it ever did at all—but, like Flores, you can’t imagine being without it.
2022	Whether one was a fervent Giants fan or simply a dispassionate observer appreciating an epic struggle between baseball’s behemoths of 2021, it absolutely sucked that the Giants’ season ended with Flores’ check swing, questionably called a third strike by first-base ump Gabe Morales. Even as it left a taste less pleasant than stale garlic fries, let’s not get carried away; the win expectancy was only 9.4% heading into Flores’ at-bat. Instead, let’s focus on the positives: with the help of the Giants’ much-praised coaching staff, Flores was able to approach a double-digit walk rate, nearly erase his lefty-righty splits and improve his DRC+ for a third consecutive year, turning into—dare we say—a reliable bat, whether starting at a non-shortstop infield spot or coming in to face a lefty in a tight game. With a club option, the Giants shouldn’t hesitate on taking a full swing on Flores in 2022.
2021	Before the five-year fever dream that saw the Giants win three championships, the history of the team in San Francisco had been one of the sadder stories in the majors: three Series appearances, three losses, each uniquely painful (Bobby Richardson, Scott Spiezio/Troy Glaus) and/or bizarre (the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake). There was also that cursed 1993 season that saw the team win 103 games, only to miss out on the playoffs because “Western” Division rival Atlanta Braves won 104. We digress. Flores made his case to be a spiritual OG (Original Giant) during the season’s final weekend, after his three-run, possible-playoff-clinching homer was swept into the dustbin of history by Trent Grisham’s walk-off shot. Ah well. The Giants will be happy to have Flores back, for the second season of a two-year deal, to create happier memories in 2021.
2020	Flores hit well in his part-time role with the Diamondbacks, spelling Christian Walker at first base and playing second when Ketel Marte was in center. He also got hurt, missing about two months with a broken foot. He was a poor defender at both spots, and it turns out breaking a foot doesn't help one's already declining defensive prowess. Flores would likely be better served playing for an American League club where he can primarily DH and play the field in a pinch. It's not clear that his bat can justify that type of role without the BABIP-infused progress it made in 2019. Somehow just 28, Flores feels more like he's exiting his prime than entering it.
2019	This man is trying to break your heart. Despite playing for a team owned by, to put it bluntly, grifters and meddlers, Flores loves the New York Metropolitans in a way that puts most fans of the team to shame. He put up his typical season despite playing through various injuries. He continued to be jerked around in terms of playing time despite being the team’s best right-handed hitting option at two or three positions. The Mets remained noncommittal about his future in blue and orange with free agency looming—all the way up until he received the diagnosis that he has early-onset arthritis in both of his knees, which ended his season early, and was likely why he was non-tendered. He does not deserve this.
2018	The One Where Wilmer Finally Develops once again turned into The One Where Wilmer Got Hurt so yeah, this one's a rerun. While the not-actually-a-shortstop shortstop has always found success against southpaws, Flores finally managed to put up average numbers against righties in 2017, posting a .262/.306/.459 line when not graced with the platoon advantage. (That also brought us ever closer to an answer to “Will they or won't they ... give him a chance to play everyday?") In early September, Flores broke his nose in sitcomesque fashion when he fouled a ball off his face. He was shut down for the year.
2017	The One Where Wilmer Finally Developed turned into The One Where Wilmer Got Hurt. New York's resident Friends expert was in the midst of an offensive breakout when Terry Collins thought the game was on a break and forgot to pinch-run for him in a key September tilt. Flores ended up in a bad plate collision, and after weeks of asking Wilmer how he was doing, the Mets discovered Flores had a broken hamate bone. Flores was there when the injury rains began to pour, filling in at all four infield positions and often kicking the Met offense out of second gear. He's still young enough to hope that The One Where Wilmer Hits Righties airs, but being a good platoon/utility player and general cultural icon isn't so bad either.
2016	What a year. Flores began the season an unfortunate guinea pig in Sandy Alderson's pitcher-hoarding, defense-Frankensteining experiment, then became the first person to cry on the field during a game since Evelyn Gardner, and eventually found himself on a late-night talk show. In the middle of all that, Flores somehow found time to make real strides. He nearly halved the whiff rates on the breaking pitches that dogged him in 2014, and while he'll never be a good shortstop, he showed outstanding work ethic to mostly avoid embarrassment. Looking forward, what would help Flores most would be a defined role. He yo-yoed between Triple-A and the majors in 2014, then yo-yoed around the infield in 2015. There is a reason closers pitch the ninth, the setup man the eighth, and so on. A cynic would say it's because the less these guys need to think, the better. We'll just say it's because it puts the players at ease. In Flores' case, being at ease is worth a lot, and it means he may have a higher ceiling than the raw numbers indicate. Unfortunately for him, the acquisitions of Neil Walker and Asdrubal Cabrera leave no room for him to settle into a position just yet.
2015	The acting chair of the Mets' “Shortstops Who Probably Shouldn't Be Shortstops” committee (Chairman Emeritus: Omar Quintanilla), Flores deserves a little slack despite his poor offensive numbers. After making the big club out of camp, he was twice demoted and then called back up, all the while relearning a position he hadn't played since 2011. The red flag with Flores is that he cheats on breaking pitches, and he's getting burned for it. That he swung at more fastballs out of the zone than breaking balls out of the zone is more horrifying even than watching him play shortstop. Speaking of which, with no suitable position to which they can assign Flores, the Mets should trade him as a public service. No man should be forced to live a lie, even if that lie increases his trade value.
2014	Flores' hit tool is further along than most of the other 2013 Mets debutants, but the questions about his defense are right there with the rest of them. With David Wright, the Mets have exactly one position locked down for the foreseeable future, and that’s the only position at which Flores might approach average. He is the prototypical B athlete, and his unnatural throwing motion will cost him wherever he plays. Flores has a wealth of minor-league experience for a 22-year-old, and the bat showed flashes at the major-league level, so the lack of production is not of much concern. But if he’s to stay a Met, a Daniel Murphy-esque positional hunt—perhaps including left field—could be in order.
2013	Flores is a prototypical "been around forever!" guy: When you appear briefly in the South Atlantic League in your age-16 season, you have leeway to take your time. Flores was still young for his leagues in 2012, but this time, it was less an excuse for merely decent performance than an additional reason to be happy about a .494 slugging percentage in Double-A. The Mets finally admitted that Flores isn't a shortstop last year: He split his time evenly between second and third at Binghamton after manning the hot corner almost exclusively at St. Lucie. Settling into his long-term defensive home should be good for Flores except insofar as that home is already occupied by David Wright in Queens. Big leaguers don't do roommates.
2012	Flores has gotten a lot of breaks as a prospect, as good seasons without power or walks were often given more praise than they deserved because Flores was consistently so young for his level. While he's still just 20, at some point you have to perform, and while Flores definitely has some hitting ability, he still undoes himself with an overly aggressive approach, and the power is still very much in the projection phase. Even more troubling is what he does in the field. He's growing, and there's been some significant thickening of his frame. There's no way he'll remain an up-the-middle player for long, and with first base or a corner outfield slot his most likely destination, it's time for the bat to start playing.\r\n
2011	Flores returned to A-ball and made much-needed improvements to both his walk rate and power numbers, earning the 18-year-old Venezuelan product a promotion to High-A, where his plate discipline regressed but his line held up thanks to a high contact rate. Flores' offensive prowess must continue to grow, as his body limits him at shortstop—the big righty isn't particularly athletic, granting him the defensive range of a large rock—and he may someday be forced to an outfield corner. Given his youth, he has time for his bat to develop enough to support his body forcing him down the defensive spectrum.
2010	After more than handling the Appalachian League as a 16-year-old in 2008, Flores came into the 2009 season with high expectations. Unfortunately, his showing at Low-A left much to be desired, at least on a statistical level, and while the numbers might not thrill you, but his date of birth certainly should, as Flores is younger than most 2009 high school-based draft picks, few of which would come close to hitting .264 at this level with a reasonable strikeout rate. There\'s no way he\'ll still be a shortstop when all is said and done, as he\'s getting bigger and slower, seemingly by the month, but don\'t give up on the bat—taken in context, it\'s really not that bad.
2009	If you believe the official listing, Flores was born on the same day that Tim Berners-Lee published the first papers on the World Wide Web. It\'s rare for a player to begin his pro career at 16, and in that small subset the numbers put up by Flores have scarcely been seen before. He was signed out of Venezuela in late 2007 for $700,000, and given his big frame and tremendous offensive potential Flores\'s top comp might just be another Venezuelan phenom, Miguel Cabrera, who also started his career at shortstop. Like Cabrera, Flores will grow out of the position, but the bat is good enough to play anywhere. Few 17-year-olds get the chance to play in a full-season league, let alone succeed in it, but Flores might be the prodigy who can do so.

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CONTRACT HISTORY

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