David Wright Says He'll Be Back, But Timetable Murky
SAN DIEGO (CBSNewYork/AP) — New York Mets third baseman David Wright is confident he'll return this season from his back injury.
He's just not sure when.
Wright, who has been in Los Angeles being treated by specialist, Dr. Robert Watkins, joined his teammates in San Diego on Tuesday, where the Mets are playing the San Diego Padres.
"Among the most frustrating parts is when you fracture something, or you break a bone or pull a hamstring, there is normally a timeline," said Wright, who has been on the disabled list since April 15. "This doesn't have one."
KEIDEL: WRIGHT DOESN'T DESERVE THIS
Wright injured his back while rehabilitating from a hamstring injury. He's been diagnosed with spinal stenosis.
"It's a week-to-week process," Wright said. "Going to therapy seven days a week and seeing doctor once a week."
It's not certain when Wright will return to baseball activities.
"We have a little more clarity than we did say 10 days ago," Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said. "We are not on the edge of our seat waiting for David to come back at this point."
Wright said "it sucks" to have been away from the team.
"This is probably overused, but you don't understand how much you miss something until you're away from it for so long," he said. "This definitely got me motivated to get back, get in uniform and go back out there and take the field."
Wright said he still feels pain when upright, due to the inflamed nerves in his back. And if he returns too soon, the consequences could be significant.
"The biggest thing the doctors tell me is you want to avoid surgery at all costs," Wright said. "So that means being a little bit more cautious. We're not talking about just playing baseball, but walking around."
But the Mets' captain remains optimistic.
"I'm confident the weekly plan that we do have is not only going to work, it is going to work sooner than later," Wright said.
When Wright does return, Alderson said the Mets will be cognizant of his condition.
"I think we feel comfortable that he will back this season playing again," Alderson said. "But I'm not sure we can have any assurance, at this point, that when he does come back he will be incident-free for the rest of the season. We have to keep that in mind."
But Wright won't let the circumstances keep him down.
"You've got two options," he said. "Either you allow this to get to you and you just kind of check out and moan and groan, or you keep your head up and you push, and every day in the rehab you challenge yourself to do the best you can, and understand how good it's going to feel when you get back and get a chance to put the uniform on for real and go out there and play."
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