Please do not be alarmed. That’s not a picture of David Wright getting injured. But the way things have been going for the Mets lately, would you be surprised if it was? The rash of injuries to hit the Mets continued this week with the news that Carlos Beltran would have to be placed on the disabled list with a bone bruise in his right knee. He joins a number of Mets players on the DL, including Carlos Delgado and Jose Reyes. The sole member of the “core of four” who is still playing is David Wright. Now he will be called upon to lead the team until the other players return, while at the same time trying not to get hurt as well.
It seems like such a long time ago when all four players played in at least 159 games in a season, but it was only last year. The Mets were able to contend for the entire season despite their much-publicized flawed bullpen due to the health and achievements of Reyes, Wright, Beltran and Delgado. This year, the Mets have remained near the top of the division despite the injuries to their core because of the contributions from players who weren’t expected to be major pieces in the puzzle. The offense of Gary Sheffield and Omir Santos coupled with the pitching of Livan Hernandez and most recently, Fernando Nieve, have given the Mets the boost needed to stay afloat while the injured players are recovering. It might be too much to expect these players to continue performing at this high level for the entire season, so the onus falls on David Wright to carry the team.
Although he’s never been the most vocal leader in the clubhouse, preferring to assert his leadership between the foul lines, Wright has slowly begun to slide into this role. From the pep talk with Mike Pelfrey in the dugout at Camden Yards to replacing Delgado as the infielder who visits the mound whenever a pitcher is in trouble, Wright has begun to embrace his role as unofficial team captain. The Mets now have many young players forced into starting roles because of the injuries. Guys like Daniel Murphy, Mike Pelfrey, Jeremy Reed and Fernando Martinez will need the tutelage of a veteran player such as Wright in order to maintain the high confidence level needed to perform on an everyday basis in the major leagues.
David Wright already is doing his part on the field by leading the National League in batting average. He has also rediscovered his base stealing skills after dropping from a career-high 34 stolen bases in 2007 to only 15 steals in 2008. The absence of Carlos Delgado in the lineup has prompted Wright to become more aggressive on the bases since they can no longer depend on Delgado’s powerful bat to drive in bushels of runs. As Wright said recently,
“We can’t rely on guys to sit back and hit the three-run home run. We haven’t done it so far this year, and I don’t see us doing it. While we have this many guys out, we really have to manufacture our runs, get good starting pitching and give that ball to the bullpen.”
Wright is doing his part to manufacture as many runs as possible on the field. Now he must also do his part in the dugout to help the younger players do the same. It is imperative for him to stay healthy as well. Otherwise there might not be much to play for once his teammates return from the disabled list. The team is on your shoulders now, David. Let’s see if we can slay Goliath once and for all!
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No Beltran, no Delgado, no Reyes means no runs which means no matter how good the pitching is, this team is not going to win many games. Plus, they have very little to offer any other teams for a trade. It is a bad situation in Flushing right now.
Can you imagine going to work knowing you could get physically hurt, and then being out of work until you recover, only to go out and do it again?
I think thats the most underrated part of baesball. My boss (who is a huge football fan) heard me listening to the Mets game one day at work. He said, “I never really got into baseball, its just boring and not as physical as football.” Well I already think hes an idiot, but that just proved it moreso.
I’m not going to say football or baseball is better or even compare them because I love them both, but I have to say that a lot of people don’t realize how hard the game can be on the body.
We Mets fans certainly are learning that the hard way this season.
Get well soon Beltran, Delgado, Reyes, Maine, Perez, Pagan, Putz, Wagner, Martinez… We miss you all!
Im not trying to be mean here but if you think baseball is nearly as physical as football or as hard on the body I dont know what to tell you. They say the average NFL player loses 10 years off his life from playing. And these guys are gettin paid millions to risk injury and then go back out there. They know the risk before they step foot on the field, it’s part of the game….but I LOL at the notion that baseball is as physical as football.
I don’t think Kelly ever said baseball was as hard on the body as football. She just said that a lot of people don’t realize how hard it was on the body. She’s right about that. I can’t imagine working seven days a week from February to October with only a day off here are there. If my boss ever asked me to work every day, then occasionally throw myself all over the ground and subject myself to projectiles being thrown at me day in and day out, I’d ask to be released from my duties.
Riccio, I think you misunderstood what she wrote. A 162 game season compared to a 16 game season with seven days of rest in between each game is a still a good comparison.
Last year over one billion dollars in salary was paid to baseball players on the DL, compared to a quarter of that in football.
The physical grind of a one hour game where depending if you’re on offense or defense you spend approximately 30 minutes on the field (actually less if you consider special teams) or 8 hours in a total season does not compare to the rigors of a 162 game season.
Football is a sprint, baseball is a marathon.
Beltran didn’t lose the cartilidge in his knees because he was walking in the park. 20% of starting pitchers don’t end up with surgery on their arms because they threw 20 passes in a game. It’s because they violently contort their bodies and arms to throw a baseball at high velocities in the most unnatural way and they do so 100 times per game. The average starting piycher throws the ball 3,500 times a season not counting warmups, spring training, etc. The average quarterback throws the ball 300-350 times in a season. Quick, name the last quarterback who needed Tommy John surgery?
lots of good stats and numbers kevin, very nice