I remember when my wife and I were doing the baby registry, I began having a bit of nostalgia. Apparently, things like the Teenager Mutant Ninja Turtles were popular again. He-Man?  Not so much. One show that apparently disappeared from our collective consciousness is Inspector Gadget. I guess Matthew Broderick ruined it for everyone. 

In any event for those too young, too old, or somewhere else when I was growing up, Inspector Gadget was a cyborg. Not a Terminator mind you.  He was more of a Ray type of cyborg in that he still maintained his human form. Now, he was a cyborg police officer not nearly as effective as Robocop.  No, Inspector Gadget was quite the opposite. 

Inspector Gadget could summon a helicopter from his head by saying, “Go, go, gadget helicopter.”  When the helicopter would actually appear, he’d usually fly into the side of a building or something. Yet, he always got the job done. The reason is his niece, Penny, and her dog, Brain, would solve the crime, and Inspector Gadget’s faults would be covered up. It didn’t matter. Good guys win, bad guys lose. All is right in the world. 

I feel that way now about Wilmer Flores. He’s a nice guy with some talent who was able to be the shortstop on an NL Pennant winning team. Suffice it to say, the Mets didn’t win because he excelled at shortstop. In fact, he had to be removed from the position. Seeing how he’s not a SS, or maybe even an everyday player, the Mets obtained two switch hitting middle infielders, who are better from the left side of the plate. 

In essence, Flores is now a utility player. He’s not particularly good (or bad) at either middle infield position. With David Wright‘s back, he’ll need to play some third. With Michael Cuddyer’s retirement, he may also need to learn to play first and outfield. Basically, he may have to cover every position except pitcher, catcher, and center. 

Essentially, Terry Collins will start a game with, “Go, go, Wilmer shortstop.”  The Mets then hope the team manages his missteps and can win the game. During a game, Terry can select, “Go, go, Wilmer pinch hit” and we’ll hope for a big basehit. Overall, we’re hoping Flores doesn’t stand in the way while at the same time hoping he’ll succeed because deep down, we all love Wilmer Flores. Again, he really is the New Murphy. 

Ultimately though, I like to think of him as Inspector Gadget. He’s the love able guy that brings out the best in everyone. He’s the guy that is all over the place while everyone else works to help defeat the bad guys. It mostly worked in 2015. I’m curious to see how it’ll work in 2016. 

Go, go, New York Mets.