Adopted: Wilmer Flores

[MFS62]

Can't provide any stats, since he was a late season International signee.
IIRC, when they signed the 6'2" lefty-hitting shortstop it was said that his body type projects him to weigh as much as 24 0 pounds.

It's real early. He has a big frame for someone 6'2" and 180 lbs. He can add 30-40 lbs to that frame. The other issue is that he turned 16 on or about August 8th, so he's very young. He could grow 2-4 inches. Part of the reason for the high ranking is that he plays SS. There is no more than a 50-50 chance that he'll remain at SS and not because Reyes is ahead of him. There haven't been many 6'4" +, 240 lbs. + shortstops.

And the prospect of possibly seeing a 240 lb shortstop is interesting enough for me to want to adopt him. B'sides, this is a virtual adoption. I won't have to feed him.

Later

[MFS62]

The 16 year old prospect played his first pro game last night. Got his first home run.
I'm beaming.

Later

[MFS62]

Happy Birthday, kid!
Keep up the good work.
Poppa's proud of you.

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Flores%20%20SS&pos=&sid=t506&t=p_pbp&pid=527038

Later

[Frayed Knot]

Turns 17 today and has put up a line of .331/.370/.535 (17 XBHs out of 57 hits) so far against mostly 18 to 21 year-old professionals in 200+ ABs.
If an American, he would have just finished his jumior year in HS and looking forward to being a senior and the draft 10 months from now. Imagine what he'd be doing with an aluminum bat to a bunch of skinny 17 y/o hurlers?

Long way to go still obviously, but Wow! so far.

[MFS62]

Wilmer celebrated his promotion to Brooklyn last night by going 3-4 with a double and an RBI.

Flores, 17, while with Kingsport in his first professional season, had hit .310 with 8 home runs and 41 RBI in 59 games. He had signed with the Mets as a non-drafted free agent on his 16th birthday in 2007.

Welcome to the Big Apple, kid.

Later

[Frayed Knot]

Named by BA as the #2 prospect in the Appalachian League - behind only #1 overall 2008 draft pick Tim Beckham.




Selected Flores comments during an on-line chat session about the Appy League:

- "For me, [the top prospect for the Mets] is still Fernando Martinez. Flores is an intriguing talent, but let's see how he performs in full-season ball, dealing with the grind of playing a full season.

- Expect Flores to follow the Fernando Martinez path, with an assignment to low Class A Savannah at age 17 to begin his first pro season.

- Maybe the most impressive number put up by Flores was only 28 strikeouts in 245 AB's at his age ... his contact ability (coupled with impressive power) is what stood out to me. Plate discipline will have to be polished against more advanced pitchers, but Flores' pitch recognition is already quite good, as he he has has the hand-eye coordination and reflexes to put all types of pitches in play.

- You can see by his month-by-month walk totals that Flores became more selective later in the season, and that the higher strikeout totals resulted from his working deeper counts. As word got around the league about his ability, Flores began to see a lot more offspeed pitches early in counts. But in a positive sign, he recognized the pattern and looked offspeed early in his at-bats.

- Flores will be developed as a shortstop, at least early in his career. He led all Appy League shortstops in every cumulative defensive category � total chances, putouts, assists, double plays, etc. And his fielding percentage was above the league average ... what's interesting about his development at SS is that, according to the Mets, he played mostly third base and outfield in his native Venezuela, so that the organization had to instruct him in the finer points of shortstop play in extended spring � things like making plays in the hole and getting his feet behind him on throws ... [but] it's much more difficult for clubs to find strong hitters at short than it is at third base or on an outfield corner.

[MFS62]

He went 1-4 with an RBI double in his first ST action with the "big club" weakened by the absence of WBC players. He's supposed to get another start today.

Welcome, kid.

Later

[Guest d'Kong76]

Nice long piece in the NY Times this morning on Wilmer ...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/15/sports/baseball/15flores.html?_r=1&ref=sports

[MFS62]

Kong76 wrote: Nice long piece in the NY Times this morning on Wilmer ... http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/15/sports/baseball/15flores.html?_r=1&ref=sports

Thanks.
I just learned that my kid and my wife have the same birthday.

Later

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

So far, his season in Savannah lacks complete awesomeness.

279/323/314 -- only 3 XBH (all doubles) in 86 ABs.

[Frayed Knot]

Kevin Goldstein - Baseball Prospectus:

It's easy to forget that [Wilmer] Flores is younger than most high school players who got drafted last month. How many of them do you think could hit .287 in a full-season [so Atl] league? It's a short list, and Flores has been especially hot of late, going 4-for-4 on Sunday while batting .320 in his last 40 games.
He's not a shortstop in the end, but the bat could end up really special.

[MFS62]

http://www.baseballamerica.com...ospects/?p=5871


Mets shortstop Wilmer Flores won admirers last season for his impressive showing in the Rookie-level Appalachian League, in which he participated as a 16-year-old. A year older and wiser, the young Venezuelan hasn�t received quite the same fanfare this season as he competes in the low Class A South Atlantic League. Let�s view them side by side:

WILMER FLORES, SS, METS
YR TEAM LGE LVL PA AVG OBP SLG HR 2B BB SO CT% ISO BB/K
�08 Kingsport Appy R 265 .310 .352 .490 8 12 12 28 88.6 .163 .36
�09 Savannah SAL LoA 375 .280 .317 .360 3 15 15 44 87.3 .075 .34

Flores, 17, has maintained his lofty contact rate and his mediocre walk-to-strikeout ratio even as he�s moved up a grade. His average and power production, though, have trailed off significantly as he grinds through his first full season of pro ball. He signed with the Mets for the ninth-highest bonus, $700,000, of the �07 international signing period.

A scout for an AL club took note of those hitting qualities while seeing Flores in action this season.

"Flores grew on me. He can hit," the scout said. "I don�t know how much power he�s going to have�and he�s a legit 25 runner with well below-average athleticism�but he has a knack for putting the barrel on the ball. And he shows plate discipline and pitch recognition at a young age.

"His hands are really good and they allow him to manipulate the barrel and adjust to pitches in all parts of the zone. They help his defense, too. But he�s not a good athlete and he can�t run at all."

Viewers of the Futures Game already have some familiarity with Flores� lack of footspeed. It seemed to take him days to run out an infield grounder during that prospect showcase, and he again showed well below-average speed in Sunday�s Sand Gnats game at Greensboro, a contest attended by a number of BA staffers. Flores went 1-for-4 with a double, but twice he grounded out sharply to third, the second time as part of a game-ending double play.

In each at-bat, Flores worked the count to his favor, and of the 15 pitches he saw in four at-bats, he swung and missed only once, at an 86 mph fastball on the inner half. He fouled off one other pitch, but in every instance he was working ahead of the pitcher�2-1, 3-1, 1-0 and 2-1. In the first inning, Flores lined a 89 mph fastball, middle-in, from righthander Tom Koehler over the center fielder�s head for a double. The defense had been playing him slightly to pull.

As Flores fills out his lanky 6-foot-3, 175-pound frame, scouts will be looking for increased power production from the righthanded hitter.

"I think learning when he gets his pitch to really attack it will help him (hit for more power)," the scout said. "But now, he just lays the barrel on the ball and throws it in the alley or in front of a outfielder for a single or double. I think as he gets more experience, he�ll learn to really attack it when he gets his pitch.

"He�s a big leaguer, I think, but not a shortstop for sure. And the approach has to improve, and he has to develop a lot more power if he�s going to be everyday on a corner."

But Flores is a unique case. Not many prospects, not even those from Latin America, compete in full-season minor leagues at age 17-18.

Later

[Frayed Knot]

"... and he�s a legit 25 runner with well below-average athleticism"

I had heard his speed was below average but that's a bit disturbing.

'25' is almost as slow as one can get on the 20-80 scale scouts use. It shocks me that a teenager on what's described as a 6' 3" - 175 frame could be THAT slow.
I mean someone tells me '25' on the speed scale and I'm thinking that qualifies you to be named an honorary Molina. Anything below that and your moniker becomes Mo Vaughn II

[Edgy MD]

And wouldn't be playing short, I'd think.

[Frayed Knot]

Well nobody seems to think he'll stay a SS in the long run but, yeah, with '25' speed you wouldn't think he ever would have become one in the first place.

[MFS62]

In those youth leagues, the best athlete, or at least the one with the best arm other than pitchers, usually plays shortstop. In the first post in this thread, I mentioned that they project him to weigh 240 pounds, definitely not a shortstop.
But, about his speed, his last home run this year was an inside-the-parker.
No reports if the outfielder needed medical attention.

Later

[Edgy MD]

Well, he's not in youth league now, and 25 speed implies he's far from the best athlete.

I'm guessing they're exaggerating, not seeing him at 100%, or judging him on a run or two when he wasn't at full speed. I could be wrong on each account.

[MFS62]

Happy 18th birthday, kid.
And happy ____ th birthday to my wife.
(If I tell you, I'll have to kill you)

Later

[nymr83]

It shocks me that a teenager on what's described as a 6' 3" - 175 frame could be THAT slow.

i don't know anything about the 20-80 scale in terms of 40-time and stuff but i was probably just as slow as a 6'5" 180 lb 17 year old.

[ashie62]

Frayed Knot wrote: "... and he�s a legit 25 runner with well below-average athleticism" I had heard his speed was below average but that's a bit disturbing. '25' is almost as slow as one can get on the 20-80 scale scouts use. It shocks me that a teenager on what's described as a 6' 3" - 175 frame could be THAT slow. I mean someone tells me '25' on the speed scale and I'm thinking that qualifies you to be named an honorary Molina. Anything below that and your moniker becomes Mo Vaughn II

saw a Met lumber to second on a double this spring and it was Wilmer. SLOW

[Frayed Knot]

BA lists Flores as 10th best prospect in Sally league this year

[Frayed Knot]

#41 on Keith Law's top 100 prospects list:

Flores, as predicted, broke with a full-season club in 2009 and held his own despite playing most of the year at 17. He has very quick wrists and is short to the ball with good finish. The ball flies off his bat, especially in BP, in which he shows the promise of future plus power, and in games he has already shown that he can square balls up against pitchers two or three years his senior. In fact, of players with at least 400 at-bats in the Sally League in 2009, only one hitter had fewer strikeouts than Flores did. His main deficiency as a player is very slow feet, even though he's not thickly built, and he has no shot to stay at shortstop and little shot of handling third base, which means he'll end up at first base or in an outfield corner, although there's an excellent chance his bat plays in any of those positions.

[Frayed Knot]

BA is back with their 'Hot List' - a round-up of who's hot over the previous week in minor league ball

Wilmer Flores - Met, South Atlantic Lg - Age: 18

Why He's Here: .370/.481/.741 (10-for-27), 2 HR, 4 2B, 11 RBIs, 6 R, 3 BB, 5 SO

The Scoop: Flores struck out for the first time this season last Friday, in his ninth game. But as his contact rate has declined since then, his power has spiked through the roof. Six extra-base hits and 11 RBIs in a week would have been practically unheard of last season, but it could be a sign of a more mature Flores learning to identify pitches he can drive and not simply swinging at the first thing near the zone. Bear in mind, he hit all of three home runs in 488 at-bats for Savannah last season.

[MFS62]

He received an intentional BB with runners on 1st and 3rd. He had already driven in 13 runs in the 1st 3 games of this series.

Later

[MFS62]

From Mets Inside Pitch:

Wilmer Flores went off this week when he knocked in 13 runs in the span of four nights. He finished the week with a 9 game hit streak and a double in four consecutive games. Flores is now tied with two others for second place in the Sally League with 16 RBI. Eleven of his hits have gone for extra bases (two HR, 9 doubles).

Later

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Ted Berg meets Wilmer, and writes about it:

I don�t know if it matters a ton whether a guy�s power appears easy or hard-fought. Gary Sheffield�s power never looked like it came easy. Dude swung the hell out of the bat, but he sure made it work for him. And I remember watching Mark Johnson take batting practice, and seeing him park ball after ball into Shea Stadium�s mezzanine without looking like it took much work at all. But he only hit 38 Major League home runs in his career. S0 for all I know it doesn�t make the tiniest bit of difference, in terms of ultimate results, how much apparent exertion goes into hitting a home run. All I can say for certain is that when Wilmer Flores drove an 0-1 fastball at his knees about 350 feet and over the left field fence here in Savannah on Thursday night, it looked entirely effortless. Almost nonchalant. That such a skinny kid with such a smooth swing could drive a ball so far almost seemed an optical illusion, yet there was no doubt the ball would exit the yard as soon as he struck it. Easy power... I met Flores today. He told me he�s working on his defensive footwork, which he feels is his biggest weakness. He said the difference between how he hit last year and how he�s hitting this year is experience, and growing comfortable with the level. And he said the team�s long bus rides are tough, but worth it for the opportunity to improve as a baseball player. Twice, actually. Due to some technical difficulties I failed to successfully record the audio of my first interview with Flores, but Flores happily repeated the entire conversation. Nice kid. Funny kid. And kid, for sure. It feels like we�ve been hearing about Flores for so long that from afar it�s hard to believe he�s still so young, even if his youth is a huge part of what has made him so notable. But watch him take infield before a game or stand close to him and there�s no doubt. Knobby knees, gawky limbs, sparse hairs on his chin. He carries himself with confidence and his coaches rave about his makeup, but he looks his age. Until he connects with one, of course.

[Frayed Knot]

Keeping in mind that BA's 'Hot Sheet' is not an assessment of overall minor league/prospect talent but rather a list of who is coming off a good week, it's still nice to see Wilmer Flores at #2 this week behind only Steven Strasburg


- Why He's Here: .500/.583/.818 (11-for-22), 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 4 RBIs, 4 R, 2 BB, 3 SO, 2-for-2 SB
- The Scoop: As more money gets thrown in to the international market (and with the possibility of an international draft coming in the next few years), more and more international players are going to be on the prospect map for years before they legally become adults. Flores was a top international sign for the Mets in 2007, dominated the Rookie-level Appalachian League as a 16-year-old in 2008 and ranked as the Mets No. 2 prospect after the 2009 season.

Yet he's still just 18, still in the lowest level of full-season ball and still likely three-plus years from being able to make an impact at the major league level, so it's important to be patient. But you can certainly be excited, since Flores looks like a prodigious hitting machine, and even the power is starting to come around with five home runs on the year. He's still learning to work himself into good hitter's counts (he has 10 walks, but three were intentional), but he's such a talented hitter that it's not an issue right now. Flores also made two throwing errors and a fielding error this week to bring his error total to eight, but nobody thinks he's a future shortstop anyway; it's the bat that makes him special.

[MFS62]

A recent scouting report.
http://scoutingthesally.com/2010/06/scouting-report-v2-0-wilmer-flores-ss-new-york-mets/

Later

[Edgy MD]

Sounds like people on either side of the Flores question need a dose of perspective.

It's like that with prospects, as you want to be quick to respond to threats and buy or sell early, if only emotionally.

[MFS62]

Wilmer will be among six Savannah players who will be promoted to St. Lucie after the SAL All-Star game.
http://www.thepaper24-7.com/main.asp?SectionID=24&SubSectionID=23&ArticleID=26545

Later