New York Mets captain, David Wright, will get the day off in today’s series finale against the Cleveland Indians. To further help Wright deal with his spinal stenosis and to keep him fresh for the season, manager Terry Collins decided this was a good time to give David another rest.
“There are certain parts of the game where he’s still getting used to being in the lineup every day,” Collins said. “Where he missed so much time in spring training, you just cannot possibly practice at the speed of the game situations. I don’t care how hard [third base coach] Tim [Teufel] hits the ball at you, it’s just not the same as reacting. Like [Friday] night, he kind of got himself on his heels a little bit and had to hurry and made a bad throw.” (NJ.com)
Wright, 33, had made it clear to Collins that he needs to be in the lineup for the following two series’ as the Mets gets set to travel to Philadelphia followed by Atlanta. Going to visit the Phillies and Braves gives the Mets a grand opportunity to pad some wins onto their record, and Wright wants to be a part of it.
Wright has had great success at Citizens Bank Park, batting .292 with 20 home runs and 67 RBI over 97 games. At Turner Field, the numbers have been quite impressive as well, he has hit .260 with 19 homers and 44 RBI over 89 games.
“He just said, ‘I’ve got to play in Philly. And I like to play in Atlanta,'” Collins said. “They just know where they see the ball good and what fits their eye. It’s amazing because it’s shocking how big their numbers can be, and they know it. Just like they know who they can hit and who they can’t.”
The captain is off to a nice start on the year, batting .273 with a .429 OBP and .792 OPS. He has yet to knock any pitches out of the park and yet to produce a RBI. Wright though, has been great at setting the table for those behind him in the lineup. He has also reached base safely in 19 straight games, dating back to September 20th of last season.
