David Wright is Back, But Is It a Good Idea?

The Mets recently announced that they are going to activate longtime third-basemen David Wright from the 60 day DL. This is going to be a big moment for him, since he hasn’t played since way back in 2016. After too many injuries to count, he finally has made it all the way back to a Major League diamond. It’s been a long road, and his determination is something that deserves to be admired by everyone, both fans and otherwise. Its this incredible determination that makes this question so painful…should he? There are really only two outcomes of this, and one of them is really, really sad. David Wright was one of my favorite players growing up, and as happy as I am to see him back again, its also scary that it will end up being incredibly disappointing. I don’t want to come off as a total “glass half-empty” person, I am going to go ahead and list the good, as well as the bad, and ugly of what is going to happen.

The Good:

This is definitely what I am hoping for. Seeing a man like Wright play through so much in his career is truly inspiring, and I want to see him coming out a winner in all of that. While I don’t think it is very likely that he will come all the way back to his all-star self, he may be able to be a contributor to his team again. I know it sounds sad that this is the best case scenario for him, but it isn’t actually bad at all. Lets say he puts together a few more good seasons with the Mets. He adds a few more wins to his career WAR, which is already very high. Mix that and the very low standard that the Hall of Fame has for third basemen, along with the devotion he showed by staying with the Mets as long as he did(something voters love), he might have a real shot at making it into the Hall. It could be a truly happy ending to a man who has fought enough that he truly deserves it.

The Bad:

This one isn’t the worst, but it may be the most likely. If David Wright can’t be an affective player, he may have to retire sometime in the very near future. It could make voters a little anxious putting him in, since he doesn’t quite have the credentials yet, although he is close. Him falling short of the Hall of Fame would be a disappointment, but right now his odds seem like a little bit of a long shot as of right now.

The Ugly:

What is the worst thing that could happen to someone who had to come back from all of those serious injuries in a row? More injuries, of course. If Wright comes back only to have another huge setback, he may never be able to climb all the way back up. It would be a bitter disappointment to come all the way back when nobody thought that you could, to finally be at a healthy enough state to play the game you love, only to have to be put on the shelf again, maybe forever. While this spirit-crushing even will hopefully never happen, can you really discount it considering his age and injury history? It’s something that you never want to see happen, but it is still a definite possibility.