Wright promoted to Las Vegas, but unlikely to hit Citi
CHICAGO — David Wright joined Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday, but that could be the last stop in his latest comeback attempt.
The Mets third baseman has not shown a level of consistency in the “quantity or quality” of his play, according to assistant general manager John Ricco, and appears unlikely to rejoin the club this season.
“It’s unrealistic to think he would be activated anytime soon, based on what we have seen to this point,” Ricco said on a conference call with reporters. “But we really have been taking it step-by-step and giving him every opportunity to get back.”
The Mets moved Wright to Las Vegas as part of a prearranged schedule, as the minor league season prepares to conclude in less than a week. Wright, whose 20-day minor-league rehab assignment concludes Friday, spent the past two weeks at Single-A St. Lucie, appearing in 10 games. He entered Tuesday 6-for-32 (.188) with two RBIs during his rehab assignment.
Wright went 1-for-4 with a run scored and two strikeouts against Tacoma on Tuesday.
“To be a major league player takes a lot physically,” Ricco said. “So we tried to put in place a program that he could come back and show us he’s ready to be a major league player and so far he hasn’t reached that, whether it’s in terms of the playing time or playing skill. It’s kind of an all-of-theabove at this point.”
It’s possible the Mets are uncomfortable reinstating Wright because of the insurance implications. As it stands, the Mets are recovering 75 percent of the $20 million Wright is receiving for this season.
But if Wright were to return to the majors and perform poorly, the implications could last beyond this year: The Mets still owe Wright another $27 million the next two seasons, and if he’s healthy enough to remain on the roster, regardless of performance level, the team wouldn’t collect on the insurance.
Wright, 35, last appeared in a major league game for the Mets in May 2016. He has since undergone three surgeries and continues to manage spinal stenosis, a chronic condition in his back.
Once the minor league season ends, Wright could remain in Port St. Lucie to work out, but Ricco conceded without game action there will be no real path to improving enough to show club officials he is ready. Ricco indicated Wright could also stay on the DL and rehab with the major league club.
“We knew this was going to be a possibility and we’re just going to have to keep creating opportunities for him to continue to develop,” Ricco said. “But there is no way around it; it’s difficult once you run out of the minor league games to continue that type of rehab process.”
Ricco declined to speculate whether Wright would be shut down in the final month.
“Right now we’re focused on, let’s see how he finishes up here in the last few days and we’ll have some more discussions about the specifics of what the rest of the year looks like,” Ricco said.