Sandy Alderson spoke with reporters this morning and said David Wright will visit with team doctors in New York today, and return to Port St. Lucie tomorrow.
Alderson said they do not yet know the severity of Wright's injury, nor would he comment on whether Wright is suffering from an oblique or rib cage injury.
Alderson said the team became aware of the injury prior to last night's WBC game in Miami.
Wright hoped the injury would go away, but it didn't and he felt a responsibility to deal with it, Alderson explained.
Alderson does not believe this problem is related to the stress fracture Wright had in his back two years ago.
The team has not yet discussed other options for third base in the event Wright has to miss a significant amount of time, Alderson said.
4:45 am: David Wright was scratched from the lineup before Thursday's World Baseball Classic game against the Dominican Republic.
According to David Lennon of Newsday, Wright said he was having discomfort in his rib cage, which he said is different from the rib cage injury he dealt with last spring.
Wright later spoke with reporters and said doctors from both the Mets and Team USA decided to keep him out of the lineup since he'd been dealing with the discomfort for the past 10 days.
'Obviously it's been fine to play with,' Wright told reporters. However, 'I understand the precaution that's being taken here. I'm obviously disappointed and upset I can't play, but I completely understand.'
Wright has left the World Baseball Classic and will soon visit with Mets doctors in New York.
Wright said he hopes to return to the tournament, but Team USA manager Joe Torre ruled Wright out for tonight's game against Puerto Rico in Miami and is not counting on him for the next round.
Wright is hitting .438 with a home run and 10 RBI in the World Baseball Classic.
Matthew Cerrone, MetsBlog.com:
The way I understand it, the Mets were required to be notified and, once they were aware of Wright's situation, they asked he leave the tournament and report to St. Lucie for an exam. It sucks for Wright and the WBC, but this is the right thing to do. The early buzz is that it's just a small thing, no big deal and Wright will be fine, but those rib cage, stomach muscle, lower back injuries have a way of needing lots of idle time, so let's wait and see how this progresses'
Michael Baron, MetsBlog.com:
Mar. 14, 7:24 pm: This isn't good for Team USA and for the Mets. Hopefully this is a minor bump in the road, but it is one of the reasons why I'd rather this tournament be played in November. The pitchers are in better game shape, and the position players are more primed for game action. And, if a player gets injured, there is time for him to recover before Spring Training. In this case, Opening Day is 17 days away, and Wright's status is a question mark right now'
