Wilmer Flores sheds tears thinking he's traded, Mets keep him in game
They say if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.
Take that to heart, Wilmer Flores.
The young shortstop shed tears during Wednesday's game when reports that he'd been traded began circulating. Flores reportedly had been sent to Milwaukee in a deal for outfielder Carlos Gomez.
The news hit Flores hard, as he appeared emotional during the game. Fans gave Flores a standing ovation when he came to bat in the seventh inning, and he wiped away tears when he warmed up at short before the eighth.
And yet despite the reports he no longer was a Met, Flores remained on the field until he was pulled for a pinch hitter in the ninth. Some felt the Mets were unfeeling to leave the emotional youngster out there so long.
Mets GM Sandy Alderson later announced "there is no trade" for Gomez and that a deal "will not transpire."
"During the game I heard there was a trade and I got emotional," Flores told The Associated Press. "I heard from the fans. When I came up to hit I heard everybody cheering. ... It was difficult."
Flores said he believed he'd "be a Met for life" after signing with the team at age 16. Asked if he still believed he'd been traded, Flores said he'd been told there was no deal. Alderson also apologized.
Addressed about the uproar, manager Terry Collins said, "I'm sorry he's upset," but made it clear both he and Flores had a job to do.
"Until someone tells me he has been traded, he's got to bat," an exasperated Collins said in his postgame interview. Watch it in the video below.
Flores wasn't the only one caught in the lurch. Gomez took a Twitter pic with teammates who wished him goodbye ...
On the fly saying bye to a friend the Latin combo @C_Gomez27@WilyPeralta38 @88_gparra
— Martin Maldonado (@Machete1224) July 30, 2015
... then were glad he wasn't going after all.
The Brewers' website might've been the last to know. As of 11:21 p.m. ET, a story reporting the trade still was posted.
People still were trying to figure out what went wrong late Wednesday night. MLB on FOX insider Ken Rosenthal reported that the deal had been agreed upon.
Alderson blamed modern technology for making the whole thing a mess.
"There is no trade," Alderson said. "Unfortunately social media, etc., got ahead of the facts and it may have had an adverse effect on one of the players rumored to be involved. It was an unfortunate situation."
— The Associated Press contributed to this report.