David Wright

David Wright, who possesses more team batting records than any New York Met,1 was arguably the team’s best position player ever. Wright finished in the top 10 in NL MVP voting four times, including 2007, when he finished fourth. He represented the Mets as a National League (NL) All-Star five consecutive years and seven times in the eight seasons from 2006 through 2013.2 At that point, Wright was carving out a potential Hall of Fame career. However, shortly thereafter, several back-related injuries derailed that possibility, effectively ending his career at age 32.3

Nevertheless, Wright’s lifetime OPS+4 was 133, sixth-highest all-time among third basemen,5 between Hall of Famers George Brett (135) and Wade Boggs (131). He won two Gold Glove Awards and two Silver Sluggers and played more games with the Mets (1,585) than any player besides Ed Kranepool (1,853).

Handsome, humble and friendly, the right-handed hitter may also have been the Mets’ most popular position player ever. Teammate Cliff Floyd, on the disabled list at the time, recalled arriving midgame at Shea Stadium. Stepping out of his car, he heard an unusually loud roar from the crowd. “I’d walked into a David Wright home run,” said Floyd. “I’m telling you [the cheers for him] sounded different, because that’s what happens when you’re the face of the franchise.”6

***

Born in Norfolk, Virginia on December 20, 1982, Wright was the oldest of the four sons (before Stephen, Matthew, and Daniel) of Elise and Rhon Wright. Immediately after David was born, Rhon put a bat, ball and glove in David’s crib.7

Rhon was a police officer who rose to the rank of assistant chief. He was loving but strict, insisting that David stay out of trouble. He taught David to be punctual, respectful, and diligent, and pushed all his sons to fulfill their potential. David embraced his father’s motivation with a single-minded drive. Wright wrote, “I doubt I would have accomplished what I did without the grounding of my youth.”8

Once, when Wright was pulled for a pinch-runner, he threw his helmet. His coach asked David, “Are you going to tell your dad, or am I?” Wright was petrified, knowing his father valued comportment more than performance, a principle that guided Wright throughout his personal and professional life.9

When Wright was young, the Mets’ Triple-A team, the Tidewater Tides, played in Norfolk, and Wright dreamed of playing for the local team. Each season, when major-league spring training ended and the Mets made their way north, they would play in Norfolk, where Wright saw stars like Gary Carter and Darryl Strawberry. It’s no wonder then, that Wright grew up a Mets fan.10

Wright lived baseball from the time he joined Little League. He wrote, “I would spend all Saturday at the field…eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the concession stand, watch the other games, and play in mine, loving every second of it.”11

Precocious, Wright cracked two home runs in a Little League All-Star Game and later called it “one of the best days of my young life.”12 A few years later with his AAU team, he hit six triples in one game.13 Wright filled in on his Hickory High School varsity baseball team when he was only in eighth grade. The following year he made the varsity, the first freshman at the school to do so.14

Tidewater AAU was a hotbed of baseball talent. Five alumni of the program were major-league starters from 2007–2015: Wright, B. J. and Justin Upton, Ryan Zimmerman, and Mark Reynolds.15

After another Norfolk native, Michael Cuddyer, was drafted, Wright’s goal of playing professionally became realistic, and Wright became even more motivated. He and his friends would get up at 5 AM and hit at a batting cage before it opened.16

His dedication soon paid off. Wright set his high school’s record, batting .474 as a sophomore. He shattered that mark as a junior, posting an average of .544, which included a 21-game hitting streak. Consequently, college coaches and scouts flocked to Wright’s games, eager to see the rising prospect.17

Wright originally thought he would go to college before turning pro, signing a letter of intent to attend Georgia Tech. Later, when he realized professional teams were just as interested, he decided that, if drafted in the third round or earlier, he would turn pro. With the 38th pick in the supplemental first round of the 2001 June amateur draft, Wright was selected by the Mets and signed for $960,000.18

That summer, the Mets sent the 18-year-old Wright to their Rookie League team in Kingsport, Tennessee. Now baseball was not only his love, but his living. If possible, he became even more focused, more determined to let nothing stand in his way. He wrote, “I woke up. I went to the park early. I came home late. I did it again… I loved it.”19

In 2002, Wright moved up to the Capital City Bombers (Columbia, South Carolina) of the Class A South Atlantic League. Besides missing his brothers, Wright struggled against the superior breaking pitches. To help him improve, Bombers manager Tony Tijerina came to the park early and threw him hundreds of curveballs.20 Wright established himself as a dependable run producer, driving in 93 runs in only 135 games.

In 2003, Wright advanced to Port St. Lucie of the Class A+ Florida State League. In a bad slump, Wright tried to practice his way out of it. But this time, he worked too hard. By taking extra batting practice, he was worn out by game time. After he backed off, the slump ended.21

After the season, Wright played in the invitation-only Arizona Fall League, populated by teams’ best prospects. In the showcase league, Wright showed off, hitting .341.22

Wright again progressed in 2004. He started the season with Double-A Binghamton, where he tore up the Eastern League, hitting .363/1.086 (batting average/OPS)23 with 10 home runs. In midseason, the Mets promoted him to the Triple-A Norfolk Tides, and he realized the dream of playing for his hometown team.

However, he lasted only 31 games with Norfolk – he was quickly promoted to the Mets, playing his first major-league game on July 21. The following day, he notched his first hit – a fifth-inning double. Equipment manager Charlie Samuels assigned Wright uniform number 5, the number worn by Hall of Fame third basemen Brooks Robinson and George Brett.24

He played all 67 games thereafter, starting at third base in all but one. After a 4-for-24 start during his first week (which Wright said seemed like forever), he hit .305/.889 and cracked 13 home runs. Though only a rookie, Wright was so highly thought of that manager Art Howe asked him to become a clubhouse leader.25

In 2005, Wright moved his in-season residence to Manhattan. Though often recognized and approached, Wright was careful not to adopt a carousing, late-night lifestyle, surrounding himself with mature, low-key friends.26 The plan helped Wright end his first full season with a slash line27 of .306/.388/.523, an OPS of .912, and an OPS+ of 140 – likely good enough for Rookie of the Year honors had he been eligible.28

In the seventh inning of an August game, Padres outfielder Brian Giles hit a shattered-bat looper over Wright’s head. As he chased it with his back to the infield, the twisting pop swerved over his right shoulder, forcing Wright to make a spectacular, lunging, barehanded catch. It was voted the 2005 Play of the Year on MLB.com.29

After a winter of diligent workouts, Wright entered the 2006 season “feeling stronger and more confident than ever.”30 On May 19, the Mets played the rival Yankees at Shea Stadium, filled with 56,289 loud, enthusiastic fans. With the score tied 6-6 in the ninth, a man on second, and two outs, the great Mariano Rivera intentionally walked Carlos Delgado to face Wright. With two strikes, Wright smashed a game-winning hit over the head of center fielder Johnny Damon as the crowd erupted.31

By the end of June, Wright had 19 doubles, 18 home runs, 64 RBIs, and was hitting .324/.973. As a result, he was elected to start in his first-ever All-Star Game. Wright entered the associated Home Run Derby and, though he felt out of place among the power hitters, he finished second to Ryan Howard.32

After Wright had played the equivalent of about two seasons, the Mets were convinced they had a keeper. In August, they signed him to a six-year contract worth $55 million.33

Behind Wright, Delgado, and Carlos Beltrán, each of whom exceeded 25 homers, 110 RBIs, and .900 OPS, the Mets won the NL East. They swept the Dodgers 3-0 in the NLDS before losing a down-to-the-last-out seventh game to the Cardinals in the NLCS. The team did not return to the playoffs until 2015, an absence of eight seasons.

Wright started 2007 with a 14-game hitting streak. Combined with his 12-game streak from the end of 2006, the 26-game total broke the previous franchise record of 24 games, held by Mike Piazza and Hubie Brooks. (It didn’t last long. Later the same year, Moises Alou hit in 30 consecutive games – the Mets’ record as of 2024.)

In 2007, Wright achieved career highs in batting average (.325), hits (196), on-base percentage (.416), slugging percentage (.546), OPS (.963), and stolen bases (34). He also had a career-high 8.3 WAR, second in the NL to Albert Pujols (8.7), and finished in the top 10 in the NL in hits, OBP, and OPS. He made his second All-Star team, won Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Awards, and became the third third baseman to have at least 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in a single season. The terrific performance led to a fourth-place MVP finish. Wright said, “It was the exact kind of player I wanted to be.”34

While the season was a statistical dream for Wright, it was a nightmare for the Mets and their fans. On September 12, after winning 10 of their previous 12 games, the team held a seven-game lead with only 17 to play. Although Wright hit .397/1.027 during the final 17-game stretch, the Mets collapsed, losing 12, just enough to finish one game behind the Phillies for the NL East crown.

The top three finishers in MVP voting were Jimmy Rollins, Matt Holliday, and Prince Fielder, though Wright had more WAR than each. Had the Mets won the NL East instead of Rollins’ Phillies, Wright may have been 2007’s NL MVP.

Wright’s 2008 season was almost as good as 2007. This time he attained career highs in total bases (334), RBIs (124), runs (115), and home runs (33) and finished in the top 10 (seventh) in MVP voting for the third straight season. However, the Mets endured another late-season collapse. This time, they blew a 3½-game lead by losing 10 of their final 17. Wright once more did his part, batting .354/1.057 with five homers and 15 RBIs during the team’s crash.

From 2005 through 2008, Wright was a model of excellence and consistency, his yearly statistics falling into a narrow range: doubles (40-42), home runs (26-33), batting average (.302-.325), OPS (.912-.963), and OPS+ (133-149).

In 2009, the Mets moved from Shea Stadium to Citi Field and Wright’s production decreased drastically. He batted over .300 for the fifth consecutive season, but, compared to 2008, he hit 23 fewer homers, drove in 52 fewer runs, and had 95 fewer total bases.

On August 15, Wright suffered a concussion when he was beaned by San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Cain. The injury forced him onto the disabled list for the first time – until then Wright had missed only 15 games in six seasons with the Mets.35

Many advised Wright to take the rest of the season off and recuperate over the winter, but he insisted upon returning as soon as possible. Doctors agreed to let him play, under the condition he wear a prototype helmet designed to withstand a 100-mile-per-hour fastball. Unusually large, it elicited jokes from teammates and opponents, who called it the “Great Gazoo” 36 helmet.37

In the season’s final month, he batted only .239/.656, as he struggled to overcome the fear of being hit again. The fear persisted into the offseason. During winter batting practice, the desperate Wright had coach Howard Johnson fire tennis balls at him to train him not to bail out on inside pitches. 38

Still, Wright was not back to normal until mid-April of 2010, when he was hit by a pitch for the first time since the beaning. He wrote that thereafter, “something snapped back into place in my brain” and he was once again able to confidently face a pitcher.39

Wright “obsessed” over his low home run total from 2009 and ramped up his off-season training program. Compared to previous winters, he spent twice as much time lifting weights. Upon seeing Wright on the first day of spring training, the Mets strength coach told him to cut back. Though Wright felt the program worked – he nearly tripled his home run total to 29 – he was unhappy that his batting average dropped below .300 (.283). 40

Early in 2011, during a force play in which the second baseman threw wildly to the shortstop, Wright backed up the play, leaving third base uncovered. The race with the runner for third ended with Wright attempting a diving tag.41 His awkward landing led to back pain, which Wright tried to play through. Eventually, it became too much, and after going 4-for-32 over 10 games, Wright underwent an MRI that revealed a stress fracture in his lower back. On May 16, he was placed on the 15-day disabled list. The doctors felt the injury would not be “long-term.”42 They were wrong, and Wright missed 58 games.

He came back with a bang, going 20-for-44 in the final 10 games of July, but cooled thereafter, ending the season batting .254/.771, the lowest thus far of his career.

Wright bounced back in 2012, finishing with 7.1 WAR, third in the NL. That offseason, he signed an eight-year contract for $138M. At the time, it was the largest ever handed out by the Mets. As Wright hoped, it enabled him to play his entire career with the team.43

The previous four seasons, the Mets were a cumulative 48 games under .500. Like so many others, Wright could have bolted to a more powerful team, giving the trite excuse, “All I want to do is win.” But he chose to stay, even getting a no-trade clause included in his contract. “It wouldn’t mean as much winning somewhere else,” he said.44

Thereafter, rumors swirled that Wright would be named captain of the Mets. Consequently, while playing for Team USA in the 2013 World Baseball Classic (WBC), he was dubbed “Captain America.”45

In Team USA’s first four games, a red-hot Wright batted .438 with 10 RBIs. 46 But concurrently, what had been minor soreness in his left ribcage became so painful that he couldn’t sit to eat. 47 With Mets management concerned and the start of the season only three weeks away, Wright left Team USA and returned to spring training.48

When he arrived, Mets management confirmed that they wanted to name Wright team captain. But Wright would not accept unless his teammates approved. They did, and Wright became the fourth captain in Mets history, calling it “the greatest professional honor I had ever, would ever, or could ever receive.”49

In 2013, Wright made the All-Star team for the final time in his career and served as captain of the NL’s Home Run Derby team. Having attained two real captaincies and a third by nickname, Wright had seemingly cornered the market on leadership.50

A right hamstring strain caused Wright to miss 45 games from August 3 through September 19, 2013.51 Though the Mets were out of contention, again Wright was determined to come back before the season ended. He played seven of the team’s final 10 games and homered in his first at bat upon returning. He appeared in only 112 games, but excelled when he played, batting .307/.904 and accumulating 5.2 WAR. It would be the last good season of Wright’s career. Thereafter, injuries took their toll.

That offseason, Wright married model Molly Beers. He had met Beers, then a senior at Arizona State, while in Arizona preparing for MLB’s All-Star tour of Japan in October 2006.52 As of 2024, Beers and Wright had two daughters, Olivia Shea and Madison,53 and a son, Brooks.54

In 2014, Wright was bothered by a nagging left shoulder injury55 and a bruised rotator cuff that caused him to miss 24 games.56 In one of the season’s few bright spots, Wright went 4-for-4 with a homer on July 11. After that, he batted .239, had a slugging percentage of .293, and went 189 at bats without a homer, the longest drought of his career.57 In the poorest full season of his career, Wright hit only eight home runs and batted .269/.698.

Wright again strained his right hamstring on April 14, 2015, while stealing second in an exciting 6-5 win over the Phillies. Wright said, “I’m optimistic [that I’ll only miss about] two weeks.”58 It turned out to be much longer, but his hamstring wasn’t the only problem.

Before the injury, Wright had been bothered by an achy back. As he rehabbed the hamstring, his back pain increased to the point that just sitting was excruciating. Wright wrote, “On my short drive to the Stadium each day, [I’d squirm] in search of a position that wouldn’t shoot knives of pain up my spine.”59 The problem was diagnosed as spinal stenosis, “a debilitating and irreversible narrowing of the spinal column that worsens with time.”60 Wright knew the condition would eventually end his career.

The Mets had won 11 straight in April 2015, moving into first place by 4½ games. But from then until the end of July, they went 40-47 and fell two games behind. However, near the trade deadline, the team added several key players, none more important than Yoenis Céspedes.

Céspedes hit .315/1.075 with 17 home runs and 42 RBIs in 39 games from August 3 through September 14. During that span, the Mets went 28-11, going from two games behind in the NL East to 9½ ahead. Thereafter, the team lost six of eight, briefly causing fans to flashback to the collapses of 2007 and 2008. But the Mets recovered, winning four straight to clinch the division title.

Wanting to be part of the pennant race and playoff run, Wright returned to the Mets lineup on August 24, again hitting a home run in his first at-bat. To get ready for games, Wright would stretch, do physical therapy exercises, get massage therapy, ride a stationary bike, and do skipping and jump training. Only then was he ready to swing a bat. From there, he’d hit off a tee, gradually swinging harder. The entire process would take about three hours, finally getting him loose enough to take batting practice. After that, he would do more stretching and participate in the team’s regular pregame routine.61

The Mets beat the Dodgers in the National League Division Series and the Cubs in the League Championship Series. They advanced to their fifth World Series – but lost to the Kansas City Royals, four games to one. The suffering Wright did not hit well in the Series (.208/.573), but in what became his last highlight, he propelled the Mets to their lone victory. In Game Three, Wright smacked a two-run homer in the first inning to put the Mets on the board; in the seventh inning, he lined a two-run single that provided insurance.

Early in 2016, Wright and Mets management agreed that, because of the stenosis, Wright would only play about three out of every four games. The plan didn’t last long. Though his back was the main problem, his neck also became increasingly painful. In his final at-bat of the season, on May 27, he couldn’t turn to face the pitcher. Tests revealed a herniated disk that required immediate surgery.62

Wright began the 2017 season on the disabled list, this time because of a painful right shoulder. Attempts to throw produced “embarrassing results.” The culprit was a torn rotator cuff, for which he underwent surgery. Later, he had a laminotomy, an operation meant to relieve pressure on the spinal canal.63 The surgeries caused Wright to miss the entire 2017 season.

While recovering, Wright first contemplated retirement and the prospect of an empty spot in his life. However, the feelings were mitigated knowing that, with his wife, daughter, parents, and brothers, he’d have plenty to look forward to. Nevertheless, he wasn’t ready to give up.

Wright was cleared to start baseball activities in the early summer of 2018. But, even with all that time to recuperate, he remained unable to throw. Worse, pain had become part of his everyday life. He couldn’t tie his shoes or lift his daughter from her crib.64

Associates warned Wright that his quest to play again could negatively affect his future quality of life. Still, he hoped a brief stint in the minors might pave his way back to the majors. But in his first five games at Class A Port St Lucie, he went hitless in 14 at-bats. He wrote, “My strength had evaporated. My bat speed was gone… I wasn’t a major league player.”65

It was then Wright realized he had to retire. With the team out of contention, Wright and Mets management agreed that he would return in late September to say goodbye to the fans. He played the final two games of his career on September 28 and 29, 2018.

When Wright was pulled in midgame on the 29th after taking his position, he signaled his gratitude to the sellout crowd and was moved to tears as he hugged teammates in the dugout. After the game, Wright addressed his fans, saying, “This is awesome. You had my back from day one. Thanks for cheering for me and allowing me to live out my dream. I love you guys.”66

In recent years, Wright served as guest instructor at Mets’ spring training, but as of 2024, had no intention of returning to baseball full-time. Wright is active in the Battle of the Badges charity, his David Wright Foundation, and the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters in Norfolk, for which Wright has helped raise nearly $2 million.67 Otherwise he is content to coach his three children in a variety of sports. The family resides in California, the state in which his wife Molly was born.

***

As of June 2025, Wright was the Mets’ career leader in many categories — including hits (1,777), runs scored (949), RBIs (970), walks (762), total bases (2,945), and WAR for position players (49). He also ranked second in batting average68 (.296) and third in home runs (242). On July 19, 2025, the Mets retired Wright’s number and inducted him into the team’s Hall of Fame.69

Wright’s career was too short to accumulate the statistics necessary for induction into Baseball’s Hall of Fame. Nevertheless, before injuries beset him, Wright was on that trajectory. In his first 10 seasons, he averaged 5.5 WAR per 162 games, the same as Hall of Famer Chipper Jones.70 In Wright’s first two years of eligibility, 2024 and 2025, he was named on 6.2 and 8.1 percent of Hall of Fame ballots, respectively.

“Damn man,” lamented teammate Cliff Floyd, “if he’d just stayed healthy …”71

Last revised: July 28, 2025

Acknowledgments

This biography was reviewed by Rory Costello and David Bilmes and fact-checked by James Forr.

Sources

David Wright’s 2020 memoir, The Captain, was the primary source for this story. In addition to the other sources shown in the notes, the author consulted www.baseball-reference.com.

Notes

1 Unless otherwise specified, all records and rankings included in this article consider seasons from 1901 through 2024.

2 In those All-Star games, Wright batted .389.

3 Wright was able to play only 77 games, two of them ceremonial, after he turned 32.

4 OPS is short for On-base percentage Plus Slugging percentage (OBP+SLG). It has become a popular statistic for evaluating batting performance because it correlates well with team runs scored and is easy to calculate. So, .700 to.799 would be below average to above average, .800 to .899, above average to excellent, greater than .900, excellent to elite. Dan Treacy, “What is OPS in Baseball,” The Sporting News, February 17, 2025. https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/ops-baseball-meaning-stat-slugging-base- percentage/889639770cdb3b2ac7316521. (last accessed July 18, 2025).

OPS+ is defined by baseball-reference.com as 100*(OBP/league OBP + SLG/league SLG -1) adjusted to the player’s ballpark. (It is NOT 100 times the ratio of a player’s OPS to league OPS (100*OPS/league OPS)). OPS+ is a more meaningful statistic than OPS because it correlates well to runs produced per plate appearance (PA) and, as such, indicates the player’s percentage of runs produced per PA above or below league average (an OPS+ of 150 indicates 50 percent above average, 90 indicates 10 percent below). Because OPS+ is normalized to the particular season’s league average, there is no advantage gained in high-scoring eras or vice versa, so it can be used to compare players from different eras. It also removes the advantage of playing in a hitter’s park and vice versa. Piper Slowinski, “What Is WAR,” February 15, 2010. https://library.fangraphs.com/offense/ops/ (last accessed July 19, 2025).

5 For those who played at least 60% of their games at third base and had more than 5,000 plate appearances.

6 Mike Vaccaro, “Doing It Wright,” New York Post, January 8, 2025: 44.

7 David Wright and Anthony DiComo, The Captain, (New York: Dutton, 2020), 5–6.

8 Wright, The Captain, 9–12.

9 Wright, The Captain, 26.

10 Wright, The Captain, 14–15.

11 Wright, The Captain, 6.

12 Wright, The Captain, 10.

13 Wright, The Captain, 29.

14 Wright, The Captain, 33.

15 Wright, The Captain, 19–20.

16 Wright, The Captain, 35.

17 Wright, The Captain, 35.

18 Wright, The Captain, 37–41.

19 Wright, The Captain, 47.

20 Wright, The Captain, 48.

21 Wright, The Captain, 51.

22 Wright, The Captain, 55–56.

23 Throughout the article, when two batting statistics are separated by a slash, they are batting average and OPS.

24 Wright, The Captain, 66.

25 Wright, The Captain, 76.

26 Wright, The Captain, 103.

27 A slash line presents batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage.

28 Though he played less than half a season in 2004, it was enough that he was not considered a rookie in 2005.

29 Peter Botte, “Thanks for the Memories,” Daily News, July 16, 2025: 56.

30 Wright, The Captain, 96.

31 Wright, The Captain, 94.

32 Wright, The Captain, 100.

33 Wright, The Captain, 108.

34 Wright, The Captain, 129.

35 Wright, The Captain, 171.

36 “The Great Gazoo (character), fandom.com, https://flintstones.fandom.com/wiki/The_Great_Gazoo_(character) (last accessed July 19, 2025).

37 Wright, The Captain, 174.

38 Wright, The Captain, 176.

39 Wright, The Captain, 177.

40 Wright, The Captain, 168–169.

41 Wright, The Captain, 179–180.

42 Peter Botte, “Tests Uncover Stress Fracture,” Daily News, May 17, 2011: 57.

43 Wright, The Captain, 209.

44 Andy Martino, “The Wright Call,” Daily News, December 6, 2012: 72.

45 Wright, The Captain, 218.

46  “WBC Stats,” mlb.com, https://www.mlb.com/world-baseball-classic/stats/united-states/2013 (last accessed July 19, 2025).

47 Wright, The Captain, 220.

48 Wright, The Captain, 221.

49 Wright, The Captain, 221–224.

50 Wright, The Captain, 230–231.

51 Stephen Lorenzo, “After Wright Hits DL, Mets Fall in 12 Innings,” Daily News, August 4, 2013: 53.

52 Wright, The Captain, 206.

53 Wright, The Captain, 308.

54 Matt Musico, “David Wright’s Two-Year-Old Son Has Makings of a Future Mets Top Prospect,” ES*NY, March 3, 2023. https://elitesportsny.com/2023/03/03/david-wright-2-year-old-son-has-makings-of-a-future-mets-top-prospect/ (last accessed July 18, 2025).

55 Kristie Ackert, “David Hopes to Avoid DL, but He Must Rest,” Daily News, June 29, 2014: 65.

56 Kristie Ackert, “Shut Down with Aching Shoulder,” Daily News, September 10, 2014: 50.

57 Ackert, “Shut Down with Aching Shoulder.”

58 Bill Madden, “Confidence Running Deep at Citi Field,” Daily News, April 16, 2015: 48.

59 Wright, The Captain, 241.

60 Wright, The Captain, 242.

61 Wright, The Captain, 272.

62 Wright, The Captain, 297–298.

63 Wright, The Captain, 306–309.

64 Wright, The Captain, 309.

65 Wright, The Captain, 311.

66 Wallace Matthews, “David Deserved Better,” Daily News, September 30, 2018: 60.

67 Mike Vaccaro, “Open Mike,” New York Post, June 8, 2025: 61.

68 Among players with 3,000 or more plate appearances. At .297, Keith Hernandez has the highest batting average as a Met.

69 Peter Botte, “Wright Where He Belongs,” New York Post, December 14, 2024: 47.

70 Excludes Jones’ first season, in which he played only eight games.

71 Mike Vaccaro, “Doing It Wright,” New York Post, January 8, 2025: 44.