If you are looking for a divisive reason for the Mets to suddenly implode, you are going to have to look elsewhere if you think the latest “disagreement” between Terry Collins and David Wright is going to fester. Frankly, it is much ado about nothing.
We should all know the scenario by now.
In a 7-0 game in the seventh inning between the Mets and the Brewers, Mets’ relief pitcher D.J. Carrasco served up a solo home run to Rickie Weeks. Carrasco would then promptly bean the Brewers’ next batter square in the back. That player just happens to be reigning NL MVP Ryan Braun.
Fearing that the Brewers were going to retaliate, Collins decided to sit Wright down since he didn’t want Wright to be in the middle of harm’s way. Collins claimed that there is an unwritten rule that “if you hit my guy, I’m gonna hit your guy.”
Wright adamantly disapproved the move, saying he wanted to take one for the team and the two of them could be seem arguing in the dugout. Collins stood firm in his decision. The two got over it, with both admirably showing mutual respect for each other.
Time to move on.
In any event, I believe it’s a win-win scenario for the club as both skipper and the face of the franchise showed the spunk that makes them makes them both likeable and most of all gutsy.
You can look at this from both sides and see the reasoning for their respective opinions.
Collins, while at the helm of the club, has been besieged by injuries and for a player in Wright who has been playing incredible so far this year, you can’t fault Collins for looking out for the best interests of the team. Also not lost in the matter was the effect a pitch to the head from Matt Cain a couple of years back did to not only Wright’s game, but his psyche.
Wright, for all his ups and downs with the club, wanted to show his leadership by going out to the batter’s box the next inning come high or hell water. That’s what you want in a leader. You want someone who is willing to lay it on the line and take “one for the team.” This way you get to see the guts Wright has. You get to see that he is willing to go the extra mile to protect the club.
It is with these characteristics that Collins and Wright both exhibit that make this story not much of a story, but more of a revelation of just how much Collins and Wright are competitors. There is not much more to this story than that.
Mets’ fans should be more concerned with bullpen meltdowns than dugout disagreements.
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