Frank Gray - Mets Must Avoid the Jose Reyes Syndrome with Wright

This past week David Wright went on Sirius XM as a guest of the Cliff Floyd/Mike Ferrin Show (I didn't even know they had one). During the show Wright was asked an obvious question: how he feels about the potential of being traded. His response?

"It's going to be a pain. I saw Jose Reyes everyday had to answer questions about trade rumors and what was going to happen to him. Frankly, it would be nice to not have to go through that but I'm going to do my best to answer those questions hopefully in spring training and not everyday have to answer to this rumor or that rumor. But I understand the business side of it. I understand what happens with players in my situation. I'm expecting it to, I guess, be some sort of issue."

This is a very telling quote. Wright knows from the experience of Jose Reyes how this team currently treats its' stars. The case of Reyes was a bit different, as he was clearly waiting for his payday (and who can blame him?), but Wright makes a valid point.

The fact is that the Mets caused Reyes to go through that barrage of questions every day. Wright is expecting them to do the same to him. And he's not looking forward to it. In fact, he is expecting it to get to him. Here's a guy that was so shaken by a new stadium that his power numbers dropped dramatically. Can you imagine how he will struggle this season amid trade rumors?

If the Mets love David Wright as much as they say they need to spare him this torture. It was just in May that Fred Wilpon said of Wright  he is "A really good kid, a very good player. Not a superstar." At face value that sounds like an insult, but it's not. Wilpon likes him. He says Wright is a good player and a really good kid. Does an owner that hates or is ripping his player normally say that?

If they like him, they may want to keep him. Mets GM Sandy Alderson twice has figuratively thrown him to the wolves already. Once in August when the Mets placed him on waivers and once last month when they put his name on the trading block.

Both times Alderson quickly retracted him. One can argue it was simply to gauge the interest in him from other teams. That is understandable, but how does that effect his psyche? Unlike Reyes, who was far too often injured, Wright is a player to build around.

Here is a player that has given his all for this team. He has played through pain, injury and bad years just to sacrifice for the greater good of the New York Mets. He loves this team. There is no doubt. He is a leader on and off the field. Both in the clubhouse and in the community. He is a rare breed that never gets in trouble and projects a good image of the team. What would the Mets gain by breaching that relationship?

The truth is they would alienate him like they did Reyes and Carlos Beltran. If the Mets do like him as much as they say, they need to show him their full support. They have to offer him the security that he needs and show a public interest in him.

There are three ways to do that. One, they have to stop putting his name out there and tell the league he is untouchable. Included in that would be the media. The Mets need to make a statement that he is not going anywhere. That would be such a tremendous boost to Wright that he may play inspired just based on that.

Two, they have to pick up his option. This helps the Mets because it keeps Wright around and shows him they want him, while allowing them time to negotiate a favorable long-term deal. It helps Wright by letting him know he is wanted here.

Three, they have to sign him to an extension next year. This secures his services for  many more years to come and allows him to be content and comfortable in his place in Queens. A comfortable Wright is a productive Wright. His stats speak to that.

The alternative to this is, of course, letting him squirm and become disgruntled. That makes for a unproductive player that will not get them the value they seek in the trade market. Then, they are stuck paying him millions of dollars for Jason Bay-like production and they end up letting him walk without getting anything in return for their decade-long investment.

Who wants that? The Mets know they have to do the right thing here. They know what the right thing is as well. They were not in a position to avoid that scenario with Jose Reyes. They will be able to avoid it with Wright. If they start now.