New York Mets Rumors: David Wright To Play 130 Games?

New York Mets Rumors: Will David Wright have his playing time scaled back in an effort to keep him healthy in 2016?

David Wright has been the face of the New York Mets‘ franchise for basically the last decade. Unfortunately, large parts of the last three seasons has been spent on the bench for the Mets’ third baseman, not on the field.

In 2015, it was spinal stenosis in his lower back that sidelined Wright. The 33-year old missed four months of action because of the injury, appearing in only 38 games last season. Wright is now back in the fold and ready to take over at third base once again for the Mets, but they will be sure to put in precautions to make sure that he can make it through a majority of the season on the field instead of off of it.

It sounds like the Mets already have some of those precautions in place, as general maanger Sandy Alderson says the team already has a number in mind for the amount of games that they want Wright to play in during the 2016 season. If Alderson and the Mets have their way, don’t expect manager Terry Collins to be penciling in Wright’s name into the lineup card more than 130 times this season.

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Alderson told the New York Post, through ESPN, “We’re gonna make sure that he’s not overworked. So it’s important for us to find somebody who can play 30 games or so at third base when he’s not in there. But I think we have to be realistic, and not expect that he’s gonna be an absolute everyday [player] out there playing 150 or 155 games. That’s not gonna happen.”

According to Adam Rubin of ESPN New York, Alderson also added that Wright would get most of his rest against right-handed pitching, which is a smart move. Despite all of the ailments he battled last season, Wright still hit well against left-handed pitching well, slashing .351/.429/.595 in 2015. With that type of production, it would make little sense to sit him against left-handed pitchers.

While some fans will be disappointed to hear that Wright already has a game limit and we haven’t even gotten into Spring Training, it is what is best for the player and team. The Mets have excellent depth now, as Wilmer Flores is expected to move into a utility role, with Asdrubal Cabrera and Neil Walker taking over as the starting shortstop and second base duo.

This is not a move the Mets could have afforded to make even last season, as they struggled mightily to replace Wright in the lineup. But, with the moves they made this offseason, they finally have the resources to give Wright the necessary rest throughout the season to keep him fresh and productive throughout the 2016 campaign.

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