David Wright

Biography David Allen Wright was born December 20, 1982 in Norfolk Virginia to the loving parents of Elisa and Rhon Wright. Wright is the oldest of four brothers Stephen, Matthew, and Daniel. Since Rhon was a police officer there was a strict no tolerance attitude about the household which is really seen in David today. Believe it or not Wright didn't always have his eyes set on becoming an MLB player. Like most of us Wright realized the odds of making it to the League is slim to none and was actually ready to become an engineer. Growing Up Around Baseball Growing up Wright always had instincts but his body wasn't always fit for athletics just causing him to work harder. In the Virginia area he played with the likes of Justin and B.J Upton, along with Ryan Zimmerman of the Washington Nationals. Wright has expressed excitement about when the four of them play in the big leagues together. In an interview with The Sporting News, Wright commented on the subject. "When we're all up here together, B.J and Ryan and Justin, it will be like what it was when all those guys from the Tampa area were playing (Dwight Gooden, Wade Boggs, Gary Sheffield, Fred McGriff, Tino Martinez, Dave Magadan). That's pretty cool. It makes you proud of where you came from, and you fell like you're in a special fraternity. We still work out together in the winter. We have the same trainer." Living in Virginia, Wright would often attend games of the Norfolk Tide, the Mets Triple A team. Seeing guys like Todd Hundley and Jeromy Burnitz come up threw the system inspired Wright. In high school Wright made Varsity as a Freshman third baseman. During his sophomore season Wright made the transition to shortstop and hit .471, with 4 HR, 18 RBI, while earning Honorable Mention All-State honors. During David's junior season, BJ Upton enrolled at Hickory, previously coming from a private school. BJ and David had been good friends in years past so the new teammate was widely accepted. Believe it or not Wright still held the shortstop position down, while BJ played second base. During the 2000 season Wright fell one game short of the State Title. Being highly recruited he signed a letter of intent to Georgia Tech to follow in the footsteps of Nomar Garciaparra. Senior year he had the pressure of college off his shoulders and truly flourished. He was named Virginia High School player of the year as he hit .538 with 6 HR, and 19 RBI. Career Early Career Losing Mike Hampton was the best thing for the Mets. Since the Mets lost Hampton via free agency, the team acquired a supplemental pick at the end of the first round of the 2001 draft. The Mets selected Wright with that pick, and signed him to a $960,000 bonus (which was more than his 2006 salary). Wright officially joined the Kingsport Mets of the Appalachian League in late July. Wright was moved to third base and the outfield was in his near future if the transition was not a smooth one. Almost Traded -- Twice In 2001, the Mets almost traded David to the Toronto Blue Jays for Jose Cruz Jr. The Mets wanted to hire Lou Pinella in the winter of 2002, but the Mariners -- who had Pinella under contract -- demanded Wright in exchange. The Mets decided to go with Art Howe instead. 2004 In 2004, David was a non-roster invitee to spring training and was very impressive. Controversy ensued. Starting 3B Ty Wigginton went down with an injury and the press was demanding for Wright to play. The Mets refused to call up Wright and kept him at Double A until June where he finally got to play with the Tide. On July 21, 2004 the Mets promoted Wright to the Majors. Five days later, on July 26, Wright belted his first major league home run. In a half-season with the big club, Wright impressed many. 14 homers, 40 RBI, a .293 batting average, and six stolen bases to none caught. His .332 OBP and .525 SLG put him significantly above average -- even though he was the 7th youngest player in the NL. His performance solidified his impressive resume and gave him a strong hold on the Mets third base job for the future. 2005 In his first full season with the Mets, Wright played in 160 games and batted .306 with 27 home runs, 99 runs, 102 RBI, 42 doubles, and 17 stolen bases, leading the team in average, runs, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, RBI, doubles, and finishing second in home runs to Cliff Floyd (34). Wright was also in the top ten in the National League for average, hits, total bases, RBI, extra base hits, and runs. He finished 19th in MVP voting, picking up a total of 18 points. Wright's diving, bare-handed catch in the Mets' August 9 loss to San Diego was named the "This Year in Baseball Play of the Year." 2006 2006 Season Batting Average .311 Home Runs 26 Runs Batted In 116 Hits 181 Runs Scored 96 Stolen Bases 20 On Base Percentage .381 Slugging Percentage .531 Scouting Report Wright has the ideal by the books swing. A short compact stroke, with little to no extra movement in his path to the ball. Wright goes to all fields well and has power in each direction. The initial scouting report on Wright said to pound him in but pitchers have slowly learned that its not the ideal spot to pitch him but what is? Wright works deep into counts, and is an extremely intelligent player who does not overswing and knows his role. Already Wright has 4 walk off hits, and has become the new, "Mr. Clutch" in New York. Wright's power will increase as he continues to frow, he is still just 23 years old. Statistics <stats> Player=David Wright Type=Batting </stats> References Related Articles

Template:Hall of Fame Voting David Wright Position: Third Base Team: New York Mets Uniform Number: Years in League: Three Age: Height: Weight: Bats: Right Throws: Right College: Selection: Drafted By: New York Mets Major League Debut: Salary: Date of Birth: Place of Birth: