Jose Reyes is already so important to the Mets, he’s inspiring them before he even gets called up.
As Reyes works to get his swing back in the minor leagues — he played his eighth game Sunday night for Double-A Binghamton and is hitting only .206 — one future teammate sent a message to management that he shouldn’t be losing his job just yet.
Wilmer Flores, who figures to return to his previous role as a backup infielder when Reyes joins the Mets, set a career-high with six hits, joining Edgardo Alfonzo as the only Mets to record that many hits in a game. He also hit two home runs, paving the way for the Mets’ 14-3 demolition of the Cubs that capped a dominant four-game series sweep at Citi Field.
“It’s not my choice,” Flores said, when asked about the prospect of moving to the bench. “I’m ready to play.”
Flores, who became the everyday third baseman when David Wright needed neck surgery, was 0-for-14 in his previous four games before his second-inning homer Sunday which kicked off a memorable afternoon.
Flores’ solo home run gave the Mets the lead for good, and started a seven-run frame that chased Cubs co-ace Jon Lester. Flores also drove in a run later in the inning with a single, and recorded his sixth hit in the eighth inning against Cubs catcher Miguel Montero.
“It’s definitely a good feeling being part of history,” said Flores, who planned to call Alfonzo later in the day. “Unbelievable feeling. Six hits, I never thought I was going to get six hits ever.”
It was an unbelievable weekend for the Mets (44-37), who entered the series losers of four straight games yet somehow swept the best-in-baseball Cubs, taking all four games from Chicago in a regular-season series for the first time since 1985, and reminding the Cubs of the one-sided NLCS four-game sweep last October. The Mets, from offensively inept to a sudden powerhouse at the plate, outscored the Cubs 32-11 in the series, scoring four more runs than they had managed in their previous 12 games.
Lester lasted just 1 ¹/₃ innings, the shortest outing of his 11-year career, as the Mets pounded out 22 hits, equaling a franchise record at home, and five home runs, two by Flores and one each by Rene Rivera, Kelly Johnson and Curtis Granderson, against the lefty Lester and three relievers.
Noah Syndergaard (9-3) cruised after a rocky first inning, allowing just one run and seven hits over seven strong innings. Showing no signs the bone spur in his right elbow was an impediment, he struck out eight, lighting up the radar gun with 10- mph fastballs and sharp-biting sliders.
For the second time this season, all nine Mets starters had hits, the other time June 4 against the Marlins. Eight Mets had two hits or more and they have now scored four or more runs in four straight games for the first time since doing so in eight games in a row April 15-23, and they improved to 33-7 this season when scoring at least four runs.
“It was fun. Once you score runs, the dugout comes alive, everybody cheering for each other, and that’s how it should be,” said Rivera, who had two hits and three RBIs. “Every team is going to get people hurt and have some struggles out there, but it’s the way you bounce back.”
The question for Flores is where he go from here, with Reyes expected to be a Met shortly. Manager Terry Collins said he knows it’s on his third baseman’s mind, after he lost his starting job last season and struggled this year early on as a reserve.
“He’s heard, he’s read, he’s been told that Jose Reyes is playing third base and that’s he’s on his way here,” Collins said. “Wilmer, as I have seen from the past in him, [is] saying, ‘You know what? He’s going to have to [take] this job.’ He went out today and had a big day.”
