Morning Mets Notes: David Wright Scratched with Sore Back

So, it looks like Captain America has a human side to him afterall. David Wright was getting himself ready for the big game against the Dominican Republic last night, but was a late scratch from the contest with a sore back. Wright said he’s felt a little soreness for about a week now, but didn’t go in to get treatment until yesterday. The rule at the WBC is that whenever a player goes in for treatment, their respective team is notified. The Mets got wind of what Wright did, and they made the decision to have their third baseman sit out.

This was definitely a bummer, as I was excited to see him continue tearing up opposing pitching last night, but it was the correct move. This is the face of the franchise, the $138 million man, and after this three-week tournament, he’ll have the responsibility of being on the field in Orange and Blue for approximately 150 games. Thankfully, the injury doesn’t sound serious, and Wright is planning on making a trip to PSL tomorrow to chat with the team medical staff. Team USA sure could have used their third baseman last night, as the Dominicans used another late-game rally to beat the Americans, 3-1.

Mar. 9, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA: USA third baseman David Wright is congratulated by teammates after hitting a grand slam home run in the fifth inning against Italy during the World Baseball Classic at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

On the Mets’ injury front, Kirk Nieuwenhuis continued to throw and hit in the cage indoors, as we’re creeping up on two weeks since he injured his knee running the base paths. Terry Collins is hoping to see Captain Kirk continue to rev up his baseball activity, but due to the nature of his bone bruise, running would come into the picture again slowly. Meanwhile, Daniel Murphy is still on track to appear in a minor league game this weekend, taking one step closer to appearing in a Grapefruit League game after suffering an injury to his intercostal muscle.

Danny Abriano kept us up-to-date on all the pertinent news and notes surrounding our Metsies yesterday. The saddest news was that Mike Baxter’s high school baseball and basketball coach, Jack Curran, passed away at the age of 83. Understandably so, the outfielder is taking the news hard. I hope Baxter is able to find some peace in this news and he’s able to find some focus in camp. Prayers from Rising Apple go out to Curran’s family as they handle this tough time.

After recently making the Tigers look silly in a 11-0 win earlier this week, it was Detroit’s turn to do the same against New York, as Dillon Gee got rocked in his outing, and struggled mightily with his control. He threw 53 pitches (24 strikes), walked four hitters, hit two more, and threw three wild pitches en route to giving up six runs. As for an explanation, Gee basically said that was a good example of how not to pitch. You can catch the Rising Apple recap right here.

We continued our 2013 MLB preview series yesterday, as I took a look at what the National League Central division looks like now that the Houston Astros have made the move to the American League West. Did you miss Wednesday night’s episode of The Rising Apple Report? Well, don’t worry, we have the replay for you to help get through this last day of work before the weekend.

New York looks to get back on track today as they travel to take on the Atlanta Braves today at 1:05pm. Have a Happy Friday, everyone!

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