Apr 22 2010 06:58 AM
The MFY's aren't in town so Bondy must endure the mess that is the Mets, the last line beats all.
New York Mets fans wrong to boo slumping David Wright
New York Mets third baseman David Wright is in the midst of a horrid slump, batting .212 over the last 10 games with two homers and four RBI.
| It was just another long night for David Wright, who is being swallowed whole again by cavernous Citi Field, by the mediocrity that passes for baseball there, and by the aggravated fans who semi-populate the place. Wright was struck on the wrist by a pitch in the first inning. He flubbed a tough backhand grounder for an error in the third. He ended his soggy day 1-for-2 at the plate, with an RBI single. When he struck out in the sixth, he was jeered by a vocal, impertinent minority in Flushing. This isn't new anymore. The knuckleheads in the stands have started booing Wright with alarming regularity. Less than a 10th of the way into a fresh season, Met fans are razzing their best position player because they need a target, any target, and because Omar Minaya is never included among the pregame lineup announcements. The scene must be disheartening, though Wright will never admit such a thing. "I'm glad that I'm finding a way to get on base, even when I'm scuffling, but my job is to drive in runs and I want to start doing that," Wright said, after the Mets walked nine Cubs and dropped a truly unwatchable game, 9-3. "New York, that's what they want, winners, and that's why I want to play here." Unfortunately, not everybody gets to be a Yankee, slipping on a fifth world championship ring since 1996 to go with the pinstripes and the imperial music. Most area sports teams have been struggling to stay above water, and there are some very solid players on these clubs who hear about it, even when they shouldn't. Wright has experienced the negative noise firsthand - and second-hand, too. He is close buddies with David Lee of the Knicks, who also knows a thing or two about suffering in the standings and in the big city. Lee may be jettisoned soon by the Knicks, after putting his heart and rebounding soul into some horrid basketball teams. This upsets Wright, who very much wants Lee to stick around, sharing the highs and the more frequent lows. "We became pretty close, and it's easier to root for him if he's here playing for the Knicks," Wright said. "I don't know too much besides the basics. Don't know about the cap and free agency, but I hope he stays here." Nobody knows what will happen with Lee, but Wright figures to be in New York for some time. Jeering him in Queens doesn't make much sense. Yes, the fans pay their money, they get to boo. And Wright is batting only .240 while going 2-for-9 so far on this home stand, with one RBI and no homers. Still, he is right at the top among major league leaders with 19walks, owns a .457 on-base percentage and six stolen bases. It just says something about the baseball education level of the audience when such a player is treated as if he were Luis Castillo. "Despite this being a result-oriented business, I really like where David is in his setup, his approach," Jerry Manuel said. The manager admitted after the game, however, that he is considering a rest for Wright after tonight's game, and will likely break apart the slumping 3-4 combo of Wright and Jason Bay. Wright said he was tired of talking about the lineup. Manuel pointed to a line drive and a grounder up the middle on Tuesday by Wright that might have yielded two hits for the third baseman, and changed everything. "Then we're not having this discussion," Manuel said. We're not having this column, either, if the fans would show even a modicum of patience or appreciation for the rhythms of a season. Fifteen games hardly represent a meaningful statistical sample. Wright has batted over .300 for five straight seasons. He is very likely to make that six. On a team regularly ravaged by injury, Wright has played a demanding position for at least 144 games in each of those past five seasons. His power numbers were way down in 2009, so Wright concentrated on the little things, on committing fewer errors and stealing 27 bases. For all that, he gets booed. Is it possible that Met fans are so tired of losing, they can no longer appreciate the bright spot burning from within the toxic haze? Have these spectators at Citi Field become as jaded and dumb-numb as Knick fans at the Garden? "I'm frustrated when we lose, and when I don't play well," Wright said. "It's nothing to do with playing for the Mets or the Knicks per se." He's wrong there. Put Wright in a Yankee uniform, nobody jeers 2-for-9 until October. Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseb ... z0lpjBVGJB |