When young children hear the words “New York Mets”, most think of David Wright, the face of the Mets franchise. I’ve heard rumors pertaining to David Wright possibly being traded this coming offseason. If the Mets were smart, they wouldn’t dare trade Wright, and I’ll discuss why.
First, he’s the face of the franchise, and teams almost never trade away players like that unless the team was undergoing a fire sale. Also, think about what trading him would do to the team’s popularity with fans. Right now, most fans agree that their favorite Met is Wright, me included. Most fans also think Wright is one of the only players pulling his weight as of late. Getting rid of Wright would most likely drop ticket sales even lower for the 2011 season, and the Mets can’t let ticket sales keep dropping.
I know the Mets are rebuilding, but Wright is definitly a vital piece of the Mets. Hell, David Wright is the heart of the Mets.
Second, Wright is without a doubt the best player on the team. He maintains a .300-ish average, hits about 25-30 home runs per season (with the exception of last year), is a Gold Glove third baseman, can steal plenty of bases, and is the team’s unofficial captain. Players like this are extremely rare, and if he were traded, I doubt the Mets would get a player of his caliber in return. Even if they did, the chance they would perform for the Mets in a tough New York area is unlikely. Just look at Jason Bay.
As mentioned above, Wright is the un-named captain of the team. He motivates the players, pretty much doing Jerry Manuel’s job for him. Trading Wright would cause emotional disorder in the clubhouse, and definitly shatter any of the player’s hopes for next season. Wright is the foundation on which the New York Mets are built, and trading him to rebuild would be a really bad idea.
If you had to trade anyone to start anew, I’d trade Carlos Beltran and maybe even Jose Reyes, but Wright stays. If the team trades Wright in the offseason, I believe they’d lose any chance of making a playoff run. Wright is a huge part of the team in assured stats, leadership, motivation, and fanbase. If Wright goes, the team will crumble.
Mets, be smart and keep Wright for the sake of the fans, players, and franchise.
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