David Wright was a guest of Mike Lupica on ESPN Radio on Wednesday afternoon and had some bold things to say. Rather than dedicate another post to what Wright said, I decided to just update this post from earlier today.
Wright basically told Lupica that it’s time to do more than just talking and said he agreed with Terry Collins that this team is capable of tacking on ten more wins this year.
“I know we’re in a tough division, we understand the challenge in front of us. But I’m very confident in the guys we have in this clubhouse and I’m really excited about this year.”
“We enter this season with another year of maturation from our gold glove centerfielder and our rookie of the year, a pitching staff that’s as deep as any in the game, a bullpen that answered a lot of questions going into last year, so yeah, I’m really excited about the team.”
There’s something different about David Wright this year, something I first started noticing a couple of months ago when he reported to Port St. Lucie to train and workout with Mike Barwis.
From day one, Wright’s always been a classy guy who has represented the team well, and could always be counted on to say and do the right things. Win or lose, Wright always stands tall by his locker, ready for whatever the media threw at him. Always likable, always honest, always clean cut.
However this older and more experienced version of David Wright is different. There’s a grittiness to him now I’ve never seen before. There’s so much more conviction now whenever he speaks, like when when he said this team needed to stop talking and start doing. Whenever he talks about expectations, and this year they are higher than ever, he makes sure to let everyone know that this year the team needs to back it up.
I like that he’s talking tough, but I absolutely love that he’s acting tough. There’s a swagger there that was not often seen before. He’s pissed off. He’s on a mission. He’s so focused and determined to put last year behind him. But most important of all, Wright appears ready to carry this team across the finish line if that’s what it takes.
He’s coming across as a true leader who is sick and tired of the bullshit. No more pretend contend, no more marketing gimmicks, no more non accountability.
The team issued t-shirts he made sure everyone knew he hated are now gone. He’s like a hungry lion now, looking after his pride and searching for prey. He’s looking for any potential weak spots. One wrong move and he’ll let you know it. This grittier version of Wright is not messing around, this guy is serious. You can see it in his eyes.
He also knows that if this team is going to contend that they’ll need a big season from him. As David Wright goes so do the Mets. His interview with Kevin Kernan of the New York Post resonated with me.
“I’ve proved that I can be a run producer,’’ Wright said. “I take a great deal of pride in knowing that I have a significant role in the offense and making the offense go. When I play up to my capabilities, we’re obviously a better offense, when I don’t do that, we’re not as good an offense.”
“Hitting in the middle of the lineup, the run production for me needs to be there. When it’s not there, it makes the offense more difficult, it shortens the lineup. It puts a lot of burden on other guys to pick up the slack and that’s when guys start pressing, start doing too much.”
What really jumped out at me was when Kernan asked him if at 32 he can be that kind of a leader, the kind that can put a team on his back and carry them if he has to. His response was nothing short of convincing.
“I’ve proven that I have a certain type of track record and I expect to live up to those expectations,” Wright flatly said. “That’s what I expect out of myself.”
Like I said in my opening, this is a different David Wright. A tougher David Wright. A better David Wright.
I think he’s going to have a tremendous bounce back season in 2015, and that he’s going to shut up many of his critics for once and for all. No more Mr. Nice Guy.
