When the Mets 50th Anniversary team was announced in 2002, Edgardo Alfonzo was named the Mets All-Time second baseman. Although Ron Hunt was once my favorite player, and Wally Backman conjures up memories of our last World Championship, Edgardo easily deserves this honor. Edgardo was a hitting presence in his time with the Mets, and posted a .425 OBP and a .967 OPS in 2000, the last year in which the team participated in a World Series. All of this was accomplished while playing an excellent defensive second base for an infield so accomplished that Sports Illustrated asked the following question in 1999: The Best Infield Ever?
When attending the Nesquik-sponsored Community Wiffle Ball tournament for Madison Square Boys & Girls Club last weekend, I was able to grab a few minutes with Fonzie, and he gave me his thoughts on a few young infield prospects currently working toward a full-time role at Citi Field: Dilson Herrera and Wilmer Flores.
Edgardo was the manager at the 2013 Futures Game at Citi Field on July 14, and he managed the International team that featured Dilson. When I asked Edgardo if he thought of Herrera as a true talent, Edgardo answered in the affirmative:
“Yeah, I saw a little bit, it is hard to get too much in one day. But what I saw was talent that was phenomenal, and he is very young. He was my second baseman; he was fast, very fast.”
Wilmer Flores, like Edgardo, is from Venezuela and signed with the Mets very young. Both players were signed as shortstops, and both needed to move off of short as they continued to mature physically. Watching Flores’s style of hitting, and how he already uses the entire field, conjures up thoughts of Alfonzo. Wilmer grew up idolizing Edgardo, and Fonzie keeps in contact with Wilmer and really likes him as a player.
“I know him from when he was young in Venezuela, and when he signed with the Mets I was so happy. And then now he’s here and the first question I asked him a couple of days ago when I talked to him was, do you like it here? He said, yes, it’s sure different, and I told him you have to work. And I think he has a bright future because he’s a young guy who takes this game seriously. Now let’s see what position he ends up at. I told him you have to work at all three positions, because as soon as a spot opens, you always have to be ready. He’s a young guy, he has talent, and he can hit. Wilmer can help this team in the future. Position wise right now, I would like to see him at second base.”
As Edgardo spoke about Flores, he was animated and excited. Clearly Fonzie really likes Wilmer and sees something of himself in the young Flores.
I’m sure hoping Edgardo can scout as well as he played.
