New York Mets third baseman David Wright is scheduled to play catch on Sunday per multiple reports from Port St. Lucie today.
Wright, 34, hasn’t played in a Major League game since last May and hasn’t thrown a ball since last June.
Previous Report – Feb 14
Mets third baseman David Wright spoke to reporters this afternoon at Tradition Field and discussed a few things, chief among them was an update on his spinal stenosis condition and his offseason rehab from neck surgery.
“You’re talking about a back issue that affects the way I have to prepare before a game everyday. Hopefully the neck issue is resolved. There’s not really much that I have to maintain for that. The main focus now is getting my back ready for a long season.”
The biggest hurdle for Wright will be throwing which he has yet to do. For now his biggest challenge is to work toward getting ready for Opening Day.
Wright said that mentally he’s had to temper the expectations for the kind of player he can be offensively for the Mets. But his goal is to help the team as much as he can to win a championship. “This is a fun time to be a Met and I want to be part of this winning season that I think we are going to have.”
Manager Terry Collins said that Wright will start throwing later this week and that he could not rule out giving Wright some playing time at first base at some point during spring training but not for now.
Original Report – Feb 7
New York Mets Captain, David Wright, again will be working his way back from injury as he readies for the 2017 season. The 34-year-old third-baseman has arrived at camp early to get a jump start on getting his body equipped for the grueling campaign ahead.
Kevin Kernan of the NY Post reports that Wright did some light running as well as took grounders at third base but had yet to make any throws. Wright is taking a step-by-step approach as to not overdo anything and risk injury at this early juncture of the year.
As Kernan points out, the real test for Wright will be when he does begin to throw the baseball. The neck injury that Wright had suffered from in 2016 had caused an inability to throw the ball correctly due to having an issue with raising the right arm above his shoulder, causing him to flip the ball when throwing.
The medical issues have hampered Wright greatly over these past few seasons. He appeared in just 38 games in 2015 and only 37 in 2016. It has become harder and harder for him to manage through his health problems. From spinal stenosis to the most recent herniated disk.
“I think I really have some good baseball left in me,’’ Wright said.
It is hard to think anything different of the face of the franchise for the last decade. He has been an all-time Met. A true great example on the field with how he plays the game and conducts himself off of it.
Many have already written him off, wishing he would retire to save the team the $67 million left on the seven-year deal he signed in 2012. He though has earned the right to play out what could be the final days of a great career.
I would like to believe that Wright has one more good run left in him, just because of the hard worker that he is. You cannot help but root for a player of his character and caliber.
