I can give you about a dozen jokes on how young Wilmer Flores is. He isn’t old enough to drive himself to the ballpark in the state of New York. Jose Reyes is almost a decade older. Orlando Hernandez could be his father, and with a stretch Julio Franco could be his grandfather. Bottom line: Wilmer Flores is just 16 years old, and thus far, absolutely tearing up Rookie League ball.

Wilmer Flores was born August 6, 1991 in Valencia, Venezuela. Listed at 6’3, 175 lbs, Flores is currently playing shortstop for the Kingsport Mets in the Rookie Appalachian League. With his frame and the presence of Jose Reyes in Flushing, Flores may eventually be asked to move to another infield position. Upon seeing Flores in action, the Mets minor league blog Mets Prospectus said this:

“[Flores is] quickly rising up Mets prospect boards. As of now he’s a shortstop, but I find it hard to believe he’ll stick there.–and I’m not just talking about the Mets having Reyes at SS– At age 16 the kid is already 6′3 175. Even if he doesn’t get any taller he should fill out, decreasing his range. I’m thinking he’s a 3B in the future, but with Wright at 3B, he’s probably a 1B or a LF with the Mets…”

However, for now, Flores is content playing up the middle on the left side of the diamond.

If Flores was any other prospect, insiders probably wouldn’t be as excited about the teenager’s .386 batting average in just 57 at-bats (through Sunday). But Flores isn’t just any prospect. Baseball Prospectus’ scouting and prospect guru Kevin Goldstein told MetsGeek’s Aaron Dorman:

“Wilmer Flores is a bit of an unknown, but when you talk to Mets people, they’re crazy about him. They think he can be a pretty huge player for them, but at the same time, he’s sixteen years old, and we haven’t seem him play yet. But he has the potential to jump into that group [of top Mets prospects].”

If that’s what Mets brass was saying before his hot start, imagine what they’re thinking now. Former Kingsport manager Nick Levya, who left last week to join the coaching staff of Cito Gaston’s Blue Jays, said that he had “seen stars come and go in this business…and there’s no question about Flores’ ability…His study of the game is beyond his years. He watches pitches and breaks down tendencies.”

So is there something that Flores needs to specifically work on? Apparently, he’s not so hot with the glove. “The shortcoming is his defense,” Levya said. “He looks a little awkward on defense because of his growth.” However, given Flores’ size and youth, some problems with the glove aren’t to be unexpected. Praising Flores as one of the hottest prospects in baseball last week, Baseball America said that, “The only knock on Flores is his defense, which at times can be shaky. He made three errors in a game on Tuesday night, but played the next two games error-free.” Still, if Flores can continue to hit the ball well he’ll never need to fret about finding a position. As seen with stars like Ryan Braun and Albert Pujols, a great bat can always find a place in the field.

The Mets’ farm system may be weak at the moment, but if Wilmer Flores can continue to shine, he could make the whole Mets’ minor league system look better as a whole. The right-handed teenager has a long way to go given his age, but the Mets have already proven they will reward him if he can hit. He impressed Mets scouts so much before the season that they decided he could forgo the Gulf Coast League and begin the season in Rookie League Kingsport, where the average age of the players is over 20. Flores truly is like a high school kid playing college ball, except on a whole different level. “I’m confident in my ability and I’m just getting ready to play,” Flores says. For now, Flores will be parked playing ball in Tennessee, but maybe in the next few years, his ability will lead him to CitiField. Until then, it’ll be fun to watch the young prospect’s progression.