Wright ready to start road back
David Wright (5) of the New York Mets looks on during batting practice before the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Citi Field. (June 1, 2011) Credit: Jim McIsaac
ARLINGTON, Texas -- David Wright got the green light Thursday to begin baseball activities, but that does not include hitting, which will wait until the middle of next week. Such is the delicate nature of Wright's rehab from a stress fracture in his lower back that has kept him on the disabled list since May 16.
Wright began a program to first strengthen his core Saturday in Port St. Lucie, Fla. Once that part of the regimen is complete, the Mets will be comfortable with his taking batting practice. Terry Collins made sure to emphasize that this cautious approach was built into Wright's timetable. The manager believes he could return as early as July 15, when the Mets open the second half at Citi Field against the Phillies.
"It's feasible," Collins said.
Still, that's probably the best-case scenario, and Wright's path to recovery has been anything but smooth. The best news came Thursday when a CT scan showed that the fracture finally had healed, but getting him back into baseball shape is more involved.
Wright has done little more than field ground balls from his knees, which happened only during the past week. Swinging a bat is a treacherous step up in difficulty for the lower back.
"All he's been doing is riding a bike, so he's going to start running, he's going to start doing twisting exercises," Collins said. "They didn't want him to hit, which I thought was a good idea. They didn't want him to start swinging until he's done a bunch of twisting to try to strengthen the muscles and get him a little more flexible."
Collins estimated that will take five or six days, and once Wright returns to playing, the manager plans to spend the All-Star break in Port St. Lucie evaluating his performance. "To have some eyes on him," Collins said.
When will Wright be 100 percent again? That could be tough to determine. The five-time All-Star hasn't truly been himself since suffering the injury April 19.
