So long to Mr. Met DAVID WRIGHT PLAYS LAST GAME FOR AMAZIN’S
It’s a flood of emotions as Mets Captain takes his final bow
In the end, there were tears and that signature smile. Before the first pitch of the fifth inning, David Wright turned one last time to Jose Reyes and smiled as Mickey Callaway came out of the dugout. The Mets captain hugged his long-time teammate, shook hands with third base umpire Mike Winters and began a slow walk off the field for the last time. Clapping his hands, waving and blowing a kiss to the sell-out crowd that had come for this moment, Wright’s eyes reddened as he walked from third to the mound and off the field for the final time.
It took over two years for Wright to get to Saturday night. Through spinal stenosis, back surgery, neck surgery and shoulder surgery, Wright never thought about just walking away. He battled back for this chance to walk off the field and say a proper goodbye to the game, the fans and the only team he ever knew. He wanted his two daughters, Olivia Shea, named for the Stadium where he made his major league debut, and Maddie to have one chance to see him play.
He wanted Saturday night and he took in every moment of it.
“When I am playing to look around the stands, kind of hear what some of the fans are saying, I’ve really tried today in the last few weeks, tried to kind of take that in, appreciate the signs that people take time to make,” Wright said after pinch hitting on Friday night in anticipation of his final game. “I just kind of wanted to acknowledge and try to thank the fans as much as they are I guess trying to say thank you to me. I can’t ever be as appreciative as I should be with the reception I have been receiving. It’s so really, really special.”
In a season where so much went wrong for the Mets, Saturday night was the most meaningful game they had played all season. The score was irrelevant for two teams that will finish last and second-to-last in the National League East.
The moments and memories were what mattered to Wright, the fans in the ballpark and an organization that is in the process of transition. With an uncertain future, the Mets at least put on a moving tribute to the end of an era.
It began with Wright catching the first pitch from his daughter Olivia, with his parents, wife Molly and daughter Maddie behind her. It peaked with Wright’s two at-bats, earning a standing ovation for drawing a fullcount walk in the first inning and turning Marlins first baseman Peter O’Brien into the villain of Flushing for catching his foul pop up in the fourth, his final career atbat.
Wright has put up plenty of numbers over his 14-year career. He is a seven-time All-Star, a two-time Gold Glove winner and Silver Slugger recipient. He holds the franchise record in hits (1,777), RBI (970), runs scored (949), doubles (390), total bases (2,945), extrabase hits (658) and walks (762). He is the longest-tenured captain in franchise history and has been the face of the franchise through the early successful years and the more recent struggles with humility, grace and not a whiff of controversy.
But what Wright will likely be remembered for is the connection he made with these fans. Saturday, they packed the ballpark early, cheering his every swing in batting practice. They stood and cheered every move he made leading up to his final exit.
Wright’s teammates on the field stood in position and clapped as he walked slowly toward the dugout for the final time. The Marlins stood on the top step of their dugout and applauded as he walked to the first-base line, where the rest of his teammates waited. With tears now running down his cheeks, Wright’s smile grew brighter as he acknowledged his family, before hugging each teammate, coach, bat boy, trainer and physical therapist. He popped up for one final curtain call, taking off his hat and bowing down to the crowd that came to see him. That included former teammate and long-time friend Michael Cuddyer, who came not just to support Wright, but because he needed to be there.
“Selfishly, I wanted to be here, for me,” Cuddyer said. “I told him. This night wasn’t just for him, it was closure for the fans too. And it was a night for those of us who wanted to celebrate what he has done and who he is.”