The Swinging Pendulum of David Wright

Greetings, everyone...

2005: 160 Games, 27 Home Runs, 102 Runs Batted In, .306 Batting Average, 113 Strikeouts
2006: 154 Games, 26 HR, 116 RBI, .311 BA, 113 Strikeouts
2007: 160 Games, 30 HR, 107 RBI, .325 BA, 115 Strikeouts
2008: 160 Games, 33 HR, 124 RBI, .302 BA, 118 Strikeouts
2009: 144 Games, 10 HR, 72 RBI, .307 BA, 140 Strikeouts
2010:  158 Games, 30 HR, 114 RBI, .260 BA, 217 Strikeouts (**On pace for)

Please excuse me as I get right to the point.  The numbers above are some statistics for a certain New York third baseman that is/was/still can be/may never be the toast of this baseball town.  Back in 2004, David Wright was as hyped as a prospect can be.  He was an excellent hitter, a great team guy and--I'm man enough to say it--drop dead handsome.  The Mets were ready for their new face of the franchise, and Wright didn't disappoint in the least bit.  As you can see from the numbers above, David's career up to 2009 was as brilliantly consistent as anyone could have hoped for.

In my personal career as a Mets fan (22 years) I'd have to say that 2009 was the single most miserable season I experienced.  Everybody knows that the Mets as an entire team were abysmal.  I'm more than willing to give Wright a pass for his quirky numbers that year.  (He was trying to carry the team by himself.  Nobody else in the lineup could hit.  This happened.)  As 2010 approached, Mets fans were ready to turn over a new leaf with the entire team, starting with their golden boy at third base.

So what has happened so far?  Well that's kinda tough to answer.  As we see from the extrapolated numbers for 2010 (I think 'extrapolated' is the word to use there) Wright's homer and RBI numbers have bounced back nicely so far.  But a quarter of the way through the season, his batting average has dipped way down and his strikeout numbers are way up there in the Trish Stratusphere. 

Mets fans couldn't be more perplexed.  This is the guy they watched put the ball in play for four straight years, and now he has these bizarr-o streaks where he can't even foul tip a ball for days at a time.  Have pitchers "figured out" Wright after not being able to do so for five years?  Did getting beaned in the head have some adverse effect on his mechanics?  The fans can't put together why one of the best contact hitters in baseball has become the sultan of strikeout.

So they boo.  It's the easy way out.  Part of the reason is that the fans haven't seen Wright hit the long ball with their own eyes.  David hit a home run the first time he stepped up to the plate at Citi Field.  He has not homered in his 74 home at-bats since.  The dimensions of Citi Field have completely warped his mind, and he's shown no signs of getting back on track.

Some of the extremists are ready to clean house with this Mets squad.  Some say that Wright has already peaked and the Mets should deal him before his value declines.  It's a notion that was utterly unthinkable just two years ago.  Now, it's being thunk.  Let me just say now that I am not an extremist.  As far as I'm concerned, David Wright should play his entire career in the orange and blue.  I am slowly accepting the fact that Wright may never turn out to be an Albert Pujols-type cornerstone of a franchise.  But is that truly a reason to dump him?

At the moment, Wright is just the easiest target to pick on.  Jose Reyes is putting up bench player-type numbers, with a grotesque .211 batting average.  Jason Bay has less home runs in 150 at bats than Fernando Tatis has in 40.  Reyes is starting to hear it from the fans...and Bay won't be far behind if this power sap continues.

But for now, Wright is the goat.  It's a weird situation that nobody envisioned.  Fans hate strikeouts, and they really hate when their golden boy is among the league leaders is the category.  David Wright just needs a signature moment at Citi Field to start his road to normalcy.  The fans are dying to see it, and they want nothing more than to get behind the franchise player of a few years ago.

Well, that signature moment was laid out on a platter for David last night.  Yankees vs. Mets, bottom of the ninth, two out, man on second, down by a run.  Bay and Davis launched back-to-back doubles in an improbable two out rally against Mariano Rivera.  It was down to Wright.  A few years ago, there was nobody the fans would rather have at the plate than David.  It would be a slam-dunk.  Last night, even I must admit the first thing that went through my mind was, "Please just put it in play."  Not the most optimistic mindset, I guess...

Wright did what I asked, but it wasn't nearly enough.  A weak grounder to second base, ballgame over.  The moment was there, and in one pitch it was extinguished.  So David and the fans continue to wait for it.  As far as everyone is concerned, 'the sooner, the better.'