By Melissa Rodriguez
For most, a birthday is a time to celebrate with friends and family and maybe eat some cake. For Wilmer Flores, his birthday holds much more significance. Flores was born on August 6, 1991 in Valencia, Venezuela, but it was 16 years later, when he had a life-changing birthday.
This wasn’t a typical Sweet 16 celebration, but the beginning of the infielder’s professional career. Flores, a wiry youngster, sat inside Shea Stadium and signed a free agent contract.
“I flew up to New York to sign the contract and I got to come up with my dad for that,” recalled Flores. “The next day, my lawyer was able to show us around the city and we had a celebration dinner.”
A dinner that didn’t come without hard work.
“It was around 14 that I started getting serious” he said. “I would wake up at 5:30 a.m.; my dad would drive me to practice at a small academy with about 15 other kids. At noon, he would pick me up and drive me to classes. I would go to practice every single day.”
Flores had been playing baseball in Venezuela, where baseball is the most popular sport, since the age of four. Along with his siblings, Wilmer de Jesus, Wilmer Rafael, Ronny Alejandro and Carla Alejandra, Flores enjoyed rooting for the hometown team, Valencia’s Navegantes del Magallanes, one of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League’s leading clubs.
“Baseball is big in Venezuela, so I didn’t really follow any MLB teams,” Flores said. “The two most popular teams are Magallanes and Caracas. My team was Magallanes. I went to a lot of games and I grew up a big fan of Edgardo Alfonzo. I loved going to watch him play. ”
Whenever he wasn’t watching his favorite team play, a young Flores was honing his skills on the field and imitating his favorite player.
To start of his new life in the United States, Flores left behind everything he knew. The comfort of home and the care of mom were replaced by Kingsport, Tennessee.
“It wasn’t easy leaving home at that age. The hardest thing by far was being so far away from my family,” he said. “Of course, it was hard for my mom to see one of her boys go. She does everything for us. She was so happy at the same time. All of my family was so happy and so supportive of me pursuing baseball.”
In addition to his many impressive physical talents, one of Flores’ greatest qualities is his mild-mannered personality, which has been a large part of his Major League success.
“He’s great, positive, just an overall good guy,” said Juan Lagares, “One of the most admirable things about him is how responsible he is about his work.”
While working his way through the minor league system, Flores was considered by many as one of the top prospects in baseball. However, several began to question whether the lanky, 6-foot-3 infielder had adequate defensive skills to make it in the big leagues. Flores responded by continuous hard work that earned the young infielder a pair of Sterling Awards, emblematic of the top player on his team. In 2009 and 2012, he was selected to play on the World Team at the All-Star Futures Game.
“Being a part of the World Team was a great. The first time I was just 17 and it was the closest thing I’d experienced to being in the Major Leagues. They were very special experiences.”
Five years after his first birthday surprise, Flores would experience another defining moment on his birthday.
After beginning the season at third base for the Mets’ Triple-A team in Las Vegas, he again began hearing murmurs about him.
“I knew people were talking about me and that I might get called up,” he said. “I just continued to focus on the job at hand.”
That August, the rumors proved true. Flores got the call.
“We were in Memphis and Wally [Backman] pulled me aside and told me. I was so excited to tell my parents,” he said. “I called them right away and then no one even answered! I finally got ahold of one of my brothers and was happy I got to tell someone. Turns out it was so late that my parents were already asleep.”
On August 6, 2013, Flores celebrated his 22nd birthday by making his Major League debut, in the Mets 3-2 win against Colorado.
“I didn’t have a great game. There wasn’t any cake or any family present since it all happened so quickly, but it was great way to spend my birthday,” he said. “It’s a day I will never forget.”
Flores began the year as the team’s starting shortstop and powered his way into the team’s record books, by become the first shortstop to slug eight or more home runs by the end of May. And by the end of June, a new challenge arose. Flores would be shifting positions – moving to second base.
“I will go wherever I’m needed,“ he said. “I’m happy to be in the lineup and I’m glad to help the team.”
Flores’ passion for the Mets was on full display for the world to see two days before the July 31st MLB trade deadline. Social media was buzzing with reports that the Mets were trading Flores to Milwaukee. Flores found out about the rumors while he was playing in the game - as did fans, who gave him a standing ovation in what they thought was his final at bat as a Met. Overcome with emotion, Flores was wiping away tears when he took the field the next inning.
The trade never happened - and Flores remained a Met and was serenaded with loud cheers and standing ovations the following games. Fans loved that Flores literally wore his emotions on his sleeve. And he delivered on the field too.
Two days after Flores thought he was traded, he hit is first ever walk-off home run to give the Mets a 2-1 win over the division-rival Washington Nationals at Citi Field.
“Can it happen at a better time to a better person in a bigger situation than that?” Manager Terry Collins said that night. “It’s unbelievable.”