Game Recaps

What Broken Pinkie?! David Wright Homers, Mets Win

Maybe David Wright should always have a broken pinkie. Wright homered on the first pitch he saw Saturday afternoon, helping the Mets cruise to a 5-0 win over the punchless Phillies.

davidWright’s unexpected home run to dead center field (left) was just what the Mets needed — he sent a message that he wasn’t going to be slowed down by a busted appendage. And it wasn’t just the home run; he added two more hits and was able to throw across the diamond effectively.

Lucas Duda also showed that he might be a force with which to be reckoned. Except for his two homer game, Duda has been very quiet thus far this season. Well, he made a lot of noise in the fourth inning. The Mets loaded the bases with no outs but Jason Bay grounded into a double play. A run scored, but the rally was seemingly squashed. However Duda hit a rocket into the right field seats for a two-run shot to make it a 4-0 game. He later added a double.

Jonathon Niese did the rest. He pitched six and two-thirds shutout innings, striking out five and walking just one. He’s been very good in both of his starts this season — he is proving that he certainly deserves that contract extension. The bullpen continued its dominance, shutting down the Phils the rest of the way.

But of course the big story of the day is Wright. That home run showed he can still be a big-time player, one worthy of building a team around. Admittedly, he is not Albert Pujols or Miguel Cabrera, the kind of player who seems to always comes through when a big hit is needed. But Wright proved he can still deliver in many of those situations. Just like that home run he hit in his first at bat of the 2010 season (following his mystery 10 home run season in 2009), Wright needed a big hit this time around to quiet the critics. And he did just that.

With Wright’s injury grabbing most of the recent headlines, we should not lose sight of the fact that the Mets are 6-2 and have already won a series against each the Braves and the Phillies. Who expected this kind of start?


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