No Longer the Wright Stuff

What has happened to David Wright and Jose Reyes? When the Mets brought both of these guys up in the mid-200s, fans thought these two would become one of the best shortstop-third base combos in all of baseball. After a 2006 NLCS appearance that saw the team fall just short of a World Series birth, the Mets two young stars appeared to have all the promise in the world. Both would make the All Star Team in 2007, and Wright would make the team in '08 and '09 as well, but it appears as if the magic that these players once seemed to generate has rubbed off.

In 2006, Reyes batted .300 and hit 19 homers and scored 122 runs. Reyes suffered a bit of a setback in the next two years, batting .280 and .297, and hitting 12 homers in both years. However, 2009 things came to a crashing halt as Reyes played only 36 games due to an injury that originally was deemed to be day-to-day. 2010 came and Mets fans expected to get their old Reyes back. So far the man at shortstop does not resemble the old Jose Reyes at all. Reyes is batting .216 and has 0 home runs. Reyes was moved to the 3 spot in the lineup in an attempt by manager Gerry Manuel to extend the lineup due to the absence of Carlos Beltran. However, Reyes looked confused and unsure of how to be a 3 hitter, and Manuel has moved on from that failure and inserted Reyes back to the 1 spot.

David Wright is having a terrible 2010 season by his standards and his swing appears off. Wright struggled last season in the power department, only hitting 10 home runs. Many attributed the lack of power to the new Mets ballpark, Citi Field. The deep fences at Citi Field may have made Wright adjust his swing to try and hit for more of a contact approach. Now in 2010, Wright is hitting for some power, with 8 home runs, but it is his average that is alarming. Wright is batting. 262 and is striking out seemingly every at-bat. Wright is currently on a 15-game streak in which he has struck out atleast once in every game. He looks puzzled at the plate and the Mets cannot afford for him not to produce.

When you look at the Mets lineup, with Beltran out with an injury until who knows when, and Wright and Reyes struggling, the Mets are left with Jeff Francoeur, Jason Bay, Luis Castillo, Rod Barajas, Angel Pagan, and Ike Davis to carry the offense. Francoeur has followed a hot start to the season with an extended slump and Jason Bay seems to just be adjusting to life in New York and looks to be slowly returning to form. Mets' fans hate Luis Castillo, Ike Davis is a rookie, Angel Pagan has never really been an everyday outfielder, and Rod Barajas has been the Mets best hitter, but how long can that last.

With your Big 3 out or struggling, on a team with a million question marks in the pitching rotation, its no wonder why the team has fallen under hard times of late. The team will go as far as Reyes and Wright will go, and at the pace those two are going right now, its looking like another season without the playoffs for the New York Metropolitans.