This is now Wright’s first full season since he learned about his spinal stenosis. So far, Wright has only played 52 games this far. As many people will tell you, 52 games is a short sample size. Choosing a subset of that information is a really small sample size. However, with that said, there does seem to be a pattern developing with David Wright. 

He’s not handling airplane travel well. 

Since Wright came off the DL, he’s had 13 trips that required airplane travel (regular season only). In those games, he’s had 63 plate appearances, and he’s hitting .185/.301/.389 with nine walks, five doubles, two homeruns, and 17 strikeouts. That’s a far cry from the .266/.382/.443 batting line he has had since his return. Extrapolating further, if you remove those travel dates, Wright is hitting .295/.410/.456. 

One reason for the deviation could be the small sample size. Another could be his back. 

Airplane travel has been known to exacerbate back injuries, especially lower back injuries. People can stiffen up and feel discomfort. While it is recommended that a person get up and move around on a flight to help lessen these issues, it’s difficult to do that after a nine inning game and your team is scheduled for an overnight flight. Aside from these issues, we don’t know what effects the travel has on Wright’s grueling training regiment. 

It’s still a short sample size, but there is a correlation between flights and back discomfort. There’s also a correlation between the flights and Wright’s sluggish play. It’s something to keep an eye on as the season progresses. 

Editor’s Note: this was also published on metsmerizedonline.com