Surprising SF Giants veteran leads MLB in key stat early in the season

Not many people had SF Giants veteran Wilmer Flores leading all of major league baseball in runs batted in midway through April. Yet, that is where Flores finds himself and he is atop several star players on the RBI leaderboard.

Flores has 23 RBI on the season which is two more than both Pete Alonso of the New York Mets and Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees. Part of the beauty of April baseball is that an unexpected name like Flores can get hot and lead the league in a key statistic.

SF Giants veteran Wilmer Flores leads MLB in runs batted in

The 12-year veteran has been a key part of San Francisco's hot start to the year. Flores is slashing .242/.286/.515 with six home runs and 23 RBI, showing he is far from washed up.

He has had several clutch hits for the team, the most notable one being his three-run go-ahead home run on Opening Day in Cincinnati. The 33-year-old also delivered a clutch walk-off single to secure a sweep against the Seattle Mariners in their first home series of the year. He has also been the lone hot bat when the rest of the offense is cold.

His resurgence has been a welcome sight after 2024 saw the veteran struggle mightily. A knee injury severely limited his effectiveness at the plate as he slashed a measly .206/.277/.318 with four home runs and 26 RBI in 71 games.

Flores has already eclipsed his home run total from last year and is not far from eclipsing his RBI total even though he has yet to play in his 20th game this year.

The Giants have badly needed this impressive production from Flores at the designated hitter spot in the lineup after they lost Jerar Encarnacion to a hand fracture late in spring training. Flores has stepped up in a major way which is exactly what the team was hoping for.

Even if it is just for a month, the fact that Flores has seemingly channeled Barry Bonds early this season has been fun to watch. Above all, it is great to see him healthy again. One hopes that with Casey Schmitt now essentially being a platoon partner with LaMonte Wade Jr. at first base, Flores can be relegated to DH duties so as not to expose him to injury in the field.

A resurgent Flores is a welcome sight. Even if he is not leading the league in RBIs come September, it is still very cool to see his name ahead of some of the preeminent sluggers in baseball at this point in the season.