David Wright is out indefinitely. According to Buster Olney, there is no guarantee that he’ll ever play again. It’s a sad time for the franchise and the fans, but a critical time for Sandy Alderson to plan for the present and for the future.
Squawker Lisa, you’ll be pleased to know that local media outlets are speculating on potential short-term replacements such as Yangervis Solarte and Eduardo Nunez. Olney mentions long-term options such as Todd Frazier and Nolan Arenado, though I find it hard to believe that either would be available, much less for anything less than a king’s ransom. (No, I don’t see the Mets offering to take on Jose Reyes’ contract as a way to get Colorado to give up Arenado.)
At least the Mets were able to get James Loney, who could be a respectable fill-in. The Yankees must wish he were still available after Mark Teixeira went on the DL.
And while Wilmer Flores has had a lousy year so far, maybe he’ll make the most of his chance to play third
Moving Neil Walker to third base and bringing up Dilson Herrera to play second is supposedly not an option, but Walker has shown so far that he might be a long-term solution and maybe the Mets will find it worth their while to figure out a way to keep him after this season, rather than lose a productive second baseman in free agency for the second year in a row.
While Wright does seem likely to play again in some capacity, it was startling to see Olney mention that there was no guarantee of that. Wright’s last game would certainly be a very hot ticket, so it’s strange for me to think that Lisa and I may have inadvertently attended his last game when we saw the Mets play the Dodgers on May 27.
I hope Wright is able to get a proper sendoff, but one less self-aggrandizing than the farewell tour of the captain across town.
But at least the Mets now have the opportunity – and the obligation – to start planning for life after Wright. Sure, in hindsight, if they had brought back Daniel Murphy, he could now play third (and first), but it would have been unfeasible to start writing Wright off last winter with five years left on his contract. Now the Mets have no choice but to start planning for the inevitable.
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