NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Mets inducted David Wright into their Hall of Fame and retired his No. 5 on Saturday — nearly 21 years after his big league debut.
“I went straight from the airport to the ballpark and I couldn’t wait to see what number I was going to be,” Wright said at a press conference Saturday. “That spring I was 72, and I would have been perfectly happy with 72. “But later on I found out that Charlie Samuels, the old equipment guy, gave me 5 because of Brooks Robinson and George Brett.”
Wright, who debuted against the Montreal Expos on July 21, 2004, appeared to be on track to join Robinson and Brett as a Hall of Fame third baseman when he hit .301 with 222 homers, 876 RBIs and an .888 OPS through his first 10 seasons.
But Wright played just 211 more games while battling chronic back, shoulder and neck injuries as well as a diagnosis of spinal stenosis. He went more than two years between big league appearances before concluding his career with a pair of cameos in September 2018.
“There was nothing that I could do to do the thing anymore,” Wright said. “It took a while for my brain and my heart to kind of match up with that. But I think that very, very few athletes get the ending that they want — that storybook ending. I certainly wouldn’t call mine a storybook ending, but it’s better than 99% of what athletes get and I’ll forever be thankful for getting that opportunity.”
Wright, the Mets’ most recent captain and the only player in team history to have his number retired after spending his entire career with the club, expressed his gratitude throughout a speech that capped a half-hour ceremony emceed by broadcaster Howie Rose.
Wright, emerging from the third base side of Citi Field, walked to a gold-plated third base, stood atop the bag and blew kisses to the sellout crowd. In an appropriate Mets touch, a plane taking off from nearby LaGuardia ascended into view moments after his No. 5 was unveiled high above the left field seats.
The 42-year-old married father of three, praised throughout his career for his ability to connect with stars and everyday people alike as well as his appreciation of Mets history, mentioned late media relations executive Shannon Dalton Forde and late team photographer Marc Levine during his press conference.
Near the end of his speech, he also thanked the Wilpon family, who owned the team his entire career.
“If you would have told a young David Wright to close his eyes and imagine this day, I would have said you’re crazy, no way, impossible,” said Wright, a Virginia native who grew up rooting for the Mets while attending their Triple-A games in Tidewater. “And then I would have went out in my backyard in Virginia and hit off a homemade tee with balls that were falling apart at the seams until it got dark outside to prove you right.
“Thank you so much for allowing me to live out my dream in front of you each night. I love you so much. Let’s go Mets.”
Wright is the 35th member of the Mets’ Hall of Fame and the 11th individual to have his number retired, joining managers Casey Stengel and Gil Hodges as well as Tom Seaver, Mike Piazza, Jerry Koosman, Keith Hernandez, Willie Mays, Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden as well as Jackie Robinson, whose No. 42 is retired throughout Major League Baseball.
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