Mack - David Wright

photo by Mack Ade 

Good morning.

How do I begin to write a post about one of the greatest Mets there has ever been, is still on the team, and probably will be no or very little factor in the future?

It’s sad to think about how easy it would be if this team could keep all its proven talent in one piece and no one fits this example more than past superstar third baseman David Wright.

Wright is fighting two things to keep him in the game… father time and stenosis in his neck. Frankly, he can’t do a thing about either.

I went through the age thing a number of years ago and had to hang up my third baseman glove when it started to seem like the balls hit in the hole were just being hit harder than they had been hit in the past. That wasn’t true. I just couldn’t get there in time anymore.

I also suffer from the same narrowing of the neck canals that Wright is going through and that is chronic. It only can be cured through major surgery that would end his career in a heartbeat.

Those that are currently around Wright see how hard he works to stay in this game. No one gets to the clubhouse earlier that he does and he spends countless hours in the training rooms working out the kinks. Then, on to the practice field for stretches and field practice, followed by more work in the training facility.


Mack's Mets writer, David Rubin, adds -

 As someone who suffers from spinal stenosis for the past 5 years, and has huge problems with his neck and shoulder, I feel the Captain's pain far more intimately then I care to admit. There are mornings when simply getting up and out of bed becomes a problem within itself, let alone going through the daily routines at home and at work that can prove draining before the day has even begun. I work in a stressful profession, but I don't dive for ground-balls nor make long throws across the diamond to justify my paycheck like Wright does; I can't imagine how difficult his daily routine must be just to get into shape where getting onto the field itself doesn't drive him crazy with the pain! I know that he's very highly paid and has the best trainers and doctors money can buy, but he also has a newborn child and a young wife to think about as well. After a while the battling of the pain will grow too tiring and being away from his family will become more and more taxing and at the age of 34 there is only so much more that even a true gamer like the Captain can go through before saying "enough is enough." The selfish part of me, of all Mets fans, wants him back to being his old self so that we can compete once again for the whole shebang. The humanist part of me, of all Mets fans, wants to see David have quality of life and be able to play with his child (and future children) without having to worry about being unable to function normally, or at least close to normally.

We saw this with Don Mattingly; with basketball player Brad Daugherty; and with Islanders great, Mike Bossy, who still had a HOF career in spite of having to retire at 30 due to back problems. The reality is that David Wright won't be back to his old self, but will he be able to come back again to even be 70% of his old self? And will that be enough? I'm guessing no, and no, and that this season, sadly, will see our beloved Captain hang up the cleats once and for all and go down in the record books as one of the best homegrown players the New York Mets ever produced. We can always wonder what could have been; I'd rather thank him for all that he's already done!!!

(Boy oh BOY would I love to be wrong about this!!!)

In addition, Mack's Mets writer Christopher Soto says - 

It's ok to hold out hope that David Wright can be the player he used to be but actually banking on it to happen is just illogical. Wright will be 34 years old in 2017, an age where even healthy players begin to decline. One has to recognize that he is no longer a superstar that can carry a team....but....Wright still can help the club as a role player. 

Despite his age and numerous injuries, there is still one thing that Wright does well.....Crush left-handed pitching. As long as the club can stay focused on that strength, they can maximize Wright's value to the club. Fortunately, unlike past years, the club has plenty of depth in case/when Wright needs to be placed on the disabled list. Jose Reyes, Wilmer Flores, and TJ Rivera are all capable of producing at least league average numbers.

Another Mack’s Mets writer, D-Whit, had this to say about Wright –

Over the past two years David Wright has played in 75 games. He’s been healthy enough to take the field for only 23% of the past two season’s games. Very early reports from St. Lucie are promising. He is participating in fielding drills, and according to Wright himself, “feeling fantastic”. The Captain turned 34 in December, 2017 will be his 14th year in blue and orange.

 Will it be his last?

The man who solved the long running Met 3B dilemma, redefining the position in Mets lore, is winding down a legendary Met career. It’s a career that began in the 1st round (38th pick) of the 2001 draft. He signed on July 21st and three years later the then 21 year-old Wright took over as the Mets 3B. Who did he replace? Ty Wiggington. Wright smacked 15 longballs in just 69 games that inaugural season. The baby-faced third sacker was an integral part of the team’s return to prominence from 2005-2008. Not surprisingly, those season’s were arguably his peak. He averaged over 100 RBI’s during that time and over 25 HR’s, peaking at 33 in 2008. It had all the makings of a Cooperstown-bound career.

It seemed like Wright and Jose Reyes would man the left side of the infield over the next decade, collecting pennants, awards and possibly a World Series title. It wasn’t to be. Reyes would depart following the 2011 season, and following the Madoff mess, the Mets sunk to the bottom for several seasons. Through it all Wright as remained the leader of the Mets ship, the Captain and face of the franchise before the Dark Knight arose.

Wright is now in the role of elder, though still boyish in appearance, Stenosis and last year’s neck surgery demonstrates the wear and tear his body has endured since his debut in 2004. Although a shoe-in to have his #5 retired, it appears that David will not be enshrined in Cooperstown. The injuries that have plagued him since the Mets left Shea and difficulties hitting at Citi Field, have sidetracked a career once on a Hall of Fame trajectory.

What he has meant to the fans of the Mets and team itself can’t really be measured though. I would say, only Tom Seaver, stands in front of Wright as the face of the Mets franchise. My prediction is David stays healthy enough to play 120 games, hits 16 HRs and walks off into the sunset as World Series champion. It’s Valentine’s Day, spring training is around the corner, and the season less than two months away. It’s the perfect time to dream of postseason glory.

Opinion – I just don’t see Wright being a factor anymore. And, he doesn’t offer much as a utility infielder since he really only plays one position. I’ve met Wright a few times and interviewed him once. He’s a very intelligent person and no one cares more about this team than he does. I expect him to be the first to realize when the time has come to join his friend Michael Cuddyer and actively retire. Will he last out the season and do one of those retirement parades from one city to another, accepting some stupid gift from teams that only wanted him to make out all his career? No, I expect him to try to play at 120% like he always has and go down within the season with one more diagnosis that neck surgery is the next move for quality of life here.

This is a very sad story with a very sad ending.