Wilmer Flores made his first Opening Day roster. At the trading deadline, he thought he was traded — he wasn’t. But he cried openly on the field because he thought he was. Soon after, he drilled a walk-off, 12th-inning home run against Washington.
Then there were the back spasms and strep throat that cost him 10 pounds and playing time as the playoffs approached. He got his first playoff start Monday against the Dodgers in Game 3 of the NLDS because Ruben Tejada broke his leg in the Chase Utley Game 2 takeout slide.
Yeah, it’s been a weird season — “different,” was Flores’ word.