DL Likely For David Wright; Mets Awaiting Second Opinion
NEW YORK (WFAN/AP) -- Mets third baseman David Wright has a stress fracture in his lower back that is expected to keep him out a couple weeks, though the team is awaiting a second opinion before deciding whether to put him on the disabled list.
Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said Monday that Wright had an MRI exam at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York to check on his back, which has been bothering him since he made a diving tag on Houston's Carlos Lee during a game April 19 at Citi Field.
The tentative results showed a stress fracture that typically needs rest to heal. Alderson called it a "non-surgical" course of treatment that could take at least 10 days.
"There is the possibility of a disablement, but we won't know that until we get a second opinion," Alderson said. "In the meantime, he continues to be on the roster and available."
WFAN's Jon Heyman tweeted Monday night that, though the Mets aren't saying so, Wright "will land on" the disabled list.
"Best-case is 2 weeks," he wrote. "They plan to play it safe"
Wright did not play in yesterday's loss to Florida.
The star slugger said he was shocked to learn of the diagnosis. He had been reluctant to have an MRI for several weeks despite experiencing what he described as a stiff back, instead getting treatment from the training staff and playing through the pain.
Wright finally agreed to have the scans at the team's behest, and said he was shaken Monday when he learned about the stress fracture and began speaking with spine specialists.
"I thought going in it would just be a routine thing," he said. "I was preparing for Josh Johnson and the Marlins and coming out of that, my head was spinning.
"I don't think I was scared. I think disappointed," Wright said. "You want to be with your teammates and I feel like not being able to do that is disappointing. It's frustrating, you know? But I've played through this so I know that I'm not scared by any means. Hopefully get this thing knocked out in two weeks and be right back at it."
Mets manager Terry Collins said he isn't sure whether the injury, and any impact it may have had on Wright's swing, is the reason that he's gotten off to a slow start this season.
Wright is hitting just .226 with six homers and 18 RBIs.
"It's almost second-guessing to say, geez, this is why his swing has gotten a little long," Collins said. "I think the nagging injury of it all caused him to change some mechanical things, yes, but we had no reason to think he couldn't play with it."
Wright certainly wasn't about to blame the injury on his recent struggles.
"By no means is this thing a cop-out or an excuse for what I've done so far," he said. "I've played through it and when I take the field, I expect to play at a certain level, and thus far I haven't been able to play at that level.
"This two weeks, I'm going to get better," Wright added. "I'm going to get back in the lineup and I'm going to start playing at the level I expect."
It was a busy day for the Mets at the Hospital for Special Surgery.
Hotshot pitching prospect Jenrry Mejia had Tommy John surgery on his right elbow performed by Mets medical director Dr. David Altchek. After that, Altchek performed surgery on starting pitcher Chris Young to repair a tear of the anterior capsule of his right shoulder.
Alderson said both of those surgeries went well.
Mejia was 0-4 with a 4.62 ERA in three starts and 30 relief appearances for the Mets last season and 1-2 with a 2.86 ERA in five starts this year at Triple-A Buffalo. The right-hander is widely considered the organization's top pitching prospect.
The oft-injured Young was 1-0 with a 1.88 ERA in four starts for the Mets.
In a bit of positive injury news, first baseman Ike Davis was in the clubhouse and said he should be ready to come off the disabled list when he's eligible May 26.
Davis sprained his ankle last Tuesday when he bumped into Wright as they tracked a popup.
"It feels good. It's still a little stiff, just from spraining it. That's going to happen," Davis said. "The next couple of days, I'll be fine."
Davis, who is hitting .302 with seven homers and a team-high 25 RBIs, is expected to leave for the Mets' training complex in Florida later this week to continue his rehabilitation.
"You always want to be out there. You miss the guys, you miss the competition, especially when they're winning," he said. "I'll be in Florida and hopefully they'll just keep winning, and I'll come back and they'll be in first place."
How will the Mets fare without Wright? Fire away in the comments below...
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