David Wright one of the best third basemen in the history of the New York Mets will receive the honor of being inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Big Apple organization.
The ceremony will take place on July 19 at Citi Field, according to several people with knowledge of the plans and where the team will retire its classic number 5.
Wright will become the 10th player to have his number retired by the Mets and the second, along with Tom Seaver, to be inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame on the same day.
Considered the most outstanding position player in Mets history, Wright hit 242 home runs, drove in 970 runs and accumulated 49.2 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) in a 14-year career in New York.
He established a Hall of Fame-worthy career before he turned 30, when he began suffering back, neck and shoulder injuries that ultimately ended his career. Between 2015 and 2017, Wright played in just 75 games. He returned in 2018 to participate in two emotional games, the last of them in front of a full stadium at Citi Field.
Despite the injuries, Wright holds franchise records for hits, doubles, walks, runs batted in and runs scored, leading many of these categories by wide margins. He ranks second in home runs behind Darryl Strawberry.
In addition, he was called to the All-Star Game seven times and twice won the Gold Glove at third base, being one of the most popular New York athletes of his generation, having spent his entire career in Queens.
Mets to retire David Wright’s No. 5
No Mets player has worn Wright’s No. 5 since his retirement after the 2018 season.
Starting in July, his number will hang above the left field bleachers at Citi Field alongside those of Casey Stengel, Gil Hodges, Seaver, Mike Piazza, Jerry Koosman, Keith Hernandez, Willie Mays, Dwight Gooden and Strawberry, plus No. 42. Jackie Robinson, who is retired throughout the majors, and the Mets also have plaques honoring one of their founders, Bill Shea, as well as two broadcasters, Ralph Kiner and Bob Murphy.
For decades, the Mets avoided retiring players’ numbers unless they were destined for the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. That resulted in only Seaver and Piazza receiving this distinction between 1974 and 2020.
Recently, however, the Mets relaxed their guidelines for honoring other prominent players. Koosman, Hernandez, Mays, Gooden and Strawberry have all had their numbers retired over the past four years, clearing a backlog of major figures and setting the stage for Wright’s ceremony next summer.
Wright will also become the 35th member of the Mets Hall of Fame.
Independently, Wright is entering his second year of eligibility for the Baseball Hall of Fame. Last year he appeared on 6.2% of ballots, surpassing the 5% needed to continue being considered for entry into Cooperstown.
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