It’s time to talk about David Wright. He’s on a short list for greatest position players to ever play for the Mets and on an even shorter list of homegrown position players. Since 2004, he’s allowed the Mets to not have to worry about third base. He holds a handful of the team’s franchise records. He’s gracefully been the face of the franchise in New York City for over a decade with little controversy ever surrounding him. And sooner rather than later, his career my be over.
Although Wright is signed through 2020 and has $67 million left on his contract after this season, it’s become clear that keeping Wright on the field is proving to be nearly impossible. It’s a credit to Wright that he’s even still playing given that he has spinal stenosis, but hours of pregame preparation and multiple off days per week make it a serious chore for him to play. Even with the extreme caution that the Mets and Wright operate with, his back continues to flare up on random days, which puts the team at a disadvantage. Now a herniated disc in his neck will likely sideline him for a significant portion of time.
What makes this all so tough is that even with these injuries and everything that comes with them, Wright has been productive. His play in the field aside, Wright has a .801 OPS over the last two seasons, and he seemed to heat up towards the end of May. The problem is that he has played only 75 of a possible 212 games during that span. That number of missed games seems only likely to grow with a DL stint looming because of the neck.
When recently asked by a fan if Wright would finish out his contract, ESPN New York reporter Adam Rubin said he probably would not.
Wright is only 33 years old, and there’s no doubt that he desires to keep playing. That’s why he signed a contract through 2020. But every indication from Wright during his Mets career is that he’s a stand up guy. And while this is only speculation, it seems that he would not prolong his MLB career to solely collect a paycheck. His good friend Michael Cuddyer walked away from $12.5 million in 2016 because he did not feel he could stay healthy, and that’s fresh in Wright’s memory.
The last two seasons appear to have been extremely frustrating for Wright. He’s seen the franchise turn the corner, but most of that transformation has come with Wright on the bench or away from the team. He’s put hours and hours of preparation into each game, and still, he cannot stay on the field. Meanwhile, he has to recognize how his situation is often putting the Mets at a disadvantage on their bench. And Wright knows how much it would help the franchise to free up his contract in a time where the Mets need to extend their young pitchers and possibly re-sign Yoenis Cespedes.
When the spinal stenosis was discovered reports were that Wright got a pretty bleak diagnosis, but that didn’t deter him. He was committed to giving it a shot, and he has done so admirably. In 2015, he won a division title and made the World Series in his return. Wright knew a full season would be tougher, so he and the Mets put a plan in place to try to keep him healthy in 2016. However, that plan does not seem to be working. No matter how much he wants to play, his body appears to be breaking down.
If the neck injury or any other injury on the horizon forces Wright to miss a significant portion of 2016, it would seem likely that he will start thinking about his future. He’ll need to ask himself, how long can I continue to put this much work in to only play a portion of the season, and how will playing affect the rest of my life? These will no doubt be tough questions to answer for Wright, who knows he has a chance to win a ring with this young Mets core. More conversations likely loom with Don Mattingly, who was in a near identical situation with the Yankees two decades ago. There can also be conversations with the Mets about a potential buyout for his contract and a role within the organization if he does retire.
The only thing certain is that Wright is at a crossroads, and it seems to be a growing possibility that his final game is on the horizon, maybe even this season. It might seem quick, but it shouldn’t come as a surprise given all that has transpired the last two seasons. One day Wright will decide his body cannot handle baseball anymore, and that will be it. There will likely be no farewell tour, and there might not be much warning. So enjoy Wright while you still can. He deserves the fans’ appreciation as any Mets player in franchise history, and he’s at a point in his career where any game might be his last.
