It’s obvious. Both Jenrry Mejia and David Wright are playing hurt. While they are proving their commitment to the game and to their teammates and fans, they are taking a giant risk and putting the 2015 season on the line.
2015 is all but the year everyone in the front office pointed to as the year where the Mets return to contention. Matt Harvey will be back. All of the top pitching prospects will be in the big leagues and contributing. The Mets also plan to add an outside bat via trade in the winter, which should add another element to their lineup. It was all supposed to come together in 2015.
But having both your franchise third-baseman and your young closer playing injured in what is now a dead season, that could force the goal posts to be moved again.
Mejia and Wright are key to the Mets success going forward. Having them both at 100% for the start of the season is crucial. Mejia is playing with a hernia that needs surgery at the end of the season. Everyone has admitted that. Yet he is still trying to pitch through it. Why? If the Mets were in a playoff race, it would be understandable why Mejia would want to pitch through the injury. The Mets aren’t competing this year. It’s best for Mejia and the Mets that he gets the surgery and begins rehabbing for the 2015 season.
For months people have noticed that it looks like Wright is playing hurt. His shoulder that kept him sidelined earlier in the season seems to be bothering him yet again, and the results tell the same story. With only a month and half left in the season, maybe some extra rest for Wright would do wonders for an obvious issue with his shoulder.
David Wright is this franchise. Everybody knows that. He is the face of the Mets. Not having him in the 2015 season would be a crippling blow before the games could be played.
On top of both of these guys, there are also guys like Jon Niese and Dillon Gee that look to either be struggling, hurt or both.
With a young crop of pitching needing to get to the big leagues, it also makes sense to get this guys some rest as well so the Mets can take a look at guys like Noah Syndergaard and Rafael Montero for an extended period of time.
2014 is over. The Mets are now in evaluation mode. Lucas Duda is playing every day at first. Wilmer Flores is playing every day at short. Giving injured guys needed rest should be a part of this evaluation. 2015 needs to be a year where the Mets compete, not where they evaluate for another year. That means they need to be healthy. And that starts with giving guys rest now.
This article seems almost unnecessary to print. That it has to be printed tells us just how illogical this organization is.
Who has made the decision to not rest David Wright’s shoulder? Terry Collins? Sandy Alderson?
I simply don’t “get” these NY Mets. So much makes so little sense.
I’d like to see Matt Reynolds get some MLB experience, and maybe Kevin Plawecki. Noah should be here.
Completely disagree. The offseason is 5 months long, there is plenty of time to rest. Resting in August or September is not going to affect you next April.
Play ball and get reps.
Unless Colon and his 11 million dollar contract get moved the Mets will not have the means to pay for that LF bat they so desperately need. Other GM’s see the situation SA is in. While Alderson will try his best to get a return on his investment I think addition by subtraction is the best remedy for now. And if someone offered a deal for Granderson I’d make it in a heartbeat. The difference between Wright and Mejia is the risk a pitcher takes adjusting his throwing motion to relieve the pain he feels and creating a more severe injury that may require surgery instead of rest. The financially strapped Mets will probably only bring up 2-3 players at most so if Wright wants to play let him. As name says they have 5 months of off season to heal and Mejia does not have to play winter ball
The rosters expand in 11 days, they can play different people then. For now, fans who go to the stadium want to see David Wright. Isn’t 4 months enough time to heal a shoulder? A hernia? I think you are making a big deal over nothing.
What fans?
I had a lot of hope for Wilmer Flores. His fielding has been okay. But I’m disappointed in his hitting. Frankly I was expecting to see his average rise, and him not leaving RISP. This has not happened. September 1 is coming and if there isn’t a sudden turn around I think the Mets should take a good look at Matt Reynolds.
Ask Wright’s buddy Ryan Zimmerman how long it takes shoulder injuries to heal. I don’t want to baby our players, but maybe rest him twice a week or something. The last thing we need is for something to tear, and then he’s out until May or June.
And Patrick if he injures his shoulder to the point where he cannot make the long throws to first base where do the Mets move him now that Duda has emerged as a solution at first base?
Since we don’t know what the injury is, how can we tell if 5 months is enough to heal what is wrong? Maybe surgery will be needed. Meanwhile, Wright is doing his team little or no good playing at 70 or 80% effectiveness. He has obviously adjusted his swing. Players have been known to lose their natural ability by trying to compensate for an injury. (see Dizzy Dean) With his contract, the Mets need Wright for the next several years more than for this one.