I think I’ve spent more time this off-season focusing on Flores than any other player in recent memory. Can he hit to stay in the starter spot? Can the Mets trade for someone better than him? Is there anyone on the market better than him? During the Queens Baseball Convention, Wally Backman spoke incredibly high about Flores’ skills. Let’s take a look at what he did last year:
2014 Stats: 274 PA, 28 R, 13 2B, 1 3B, 6 HR, 29 RBI, .251 BA, .286 OBP
And lets see what the computers think he’ll do:
PECOTA (BP): 314 PA, 30 R, 16 2B, 1 3B, 9 HR, 37 RBI, .255 BA, .288 OBP
PECOTA (MLB.com): 479 AB, 51 R, 14 HR, 58 RBI, .255 BA, .288 OBP
MLB.com: 450 AB, 54 R, 12 HR, 50 RBI, .262 BA, .304 OBP
ZiPS: 570 PA, 73 R, 24 2B, 4 3B, 17 HR, 80 RBI, .266 BA, .300 OBP
Steamer: 510 PA, 476 AB, 48 R, 22 2B, 2 3B, 15 HR, 57 RBI, .248 BA, .286 OBP
ESPN: .264 BA, 35 R, 8 HR, 32 RBI
Average: 465 PA, 468 AB, 48.5 R, 20.7 2B, 2.3 3B, 12.5 HR, 60.7 RBI, .258 BA, .293 OBP
Wow, that ZiPS projection is a leap. If he puts up those numbers, its going to be really difficult to complain about Flores as those numbers probably put him in the top 5 shortstops in the league. Looking at his average line though, that’s acceptable. Those are pretty solid numbers coming out of short. However, those numbers are not a long term solution.
